More than 14 years after Jharkhand was carved out of Bihar as a separate State, a number of children are still dying nearby their schools due to lightening every year. The respective Governments, however, have been busy announcing compensations rather than taking precautionary measures such as installing lightening conductors in the schools.let alone Government schools in far off areas of the state even some of Government schools in the Capital City do not have lightening conductors installed. In a reality check by The Pioneer, a good number of schools were found to be without lightening conductors.
At Hinoo Rajkiyakrit Madhya Vidyalaya the necessity remained a far cry for the students. “None of the Education officials have ever discussed about such safety measures. Moreover, there is no electricity in the school since 2004. There are no benches. Students from class 1 to 8 are compelled to sit on the floor,” said the School In-Charge. The school is hardly half kilometer away from the State Assembly.The Blind School in Harmu Housing Colony had all the necessary arrangements like infrastructure, water, electricity and manpower. “We have all important materials except lightening Conductors. Children are obviously on risk,” a Teacher said requesting anonymity. Similar was the condition in Harijan Balak Vidyalaya, Doranda and Prathmik Vidyalaya, Bada Ghagra.
The Human Resource Development (HRD) department claims Disaster Management department is looking into the installation, while the latter is yet to get the list of schools that need lightening conductors installed.“We have been spreading awareness on precautions to be taken during disasters. As part of the programme, a meeting with the HRD officers was held on June 6 wherein we asked them to provide a list of government schools lacking lightening Conductors. Till date, the list is awaited,” said Sanjay Kumar Srivastava, the State Project Officer of Disaster Management department.
According to Srivastava, residents of the state seek their help after a calamity had damaged their property. “We keep on urging people to be prepared for disasters. Most fail to show certificates proving that their building is safe from calamities,” he said.Official sources maintained, some Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (KGBVs) and Primary Schools are equipped with the facility. “All the Middle and High Schools are probably devoid of lightening Conductors,” sources said.