Students who often avoid schools due to unavailability of toilets and drinking water would probably attend the classes regularly from the next year. The State Government has began implementing the directives of the Jharkhand High Court to provide the two basic facilities in all the schools across the State by December 30.
Jharkhand Education Project Council (JEPC) has partnered with the State Drinking Water and Danitation Department (DWSD) as well as various public and private companies to put in place the utilities in the toilets.
“Around 2,286 separate toilets for boys and 2,488 separate toilets for girls are required in elementary schools across the State. Meanwhile, 2,348 schools do not have drinking water facilities. For construction of boy’s toilets, we are working in convergence with the drinking water and sanitation department. For girl’s toilets besides, the drinking water and sanitation department, public and private companies, including State Bank of India (SBI), Bokaro Steel, Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) and Tata Steel are coordinating with us,” an officer of Jharkhand Education Project Council (JEPC) said.
The design of the toilet format has already been submitted by United Nations International Children Emergency Fund (UNICEF). The fund’s State coordinator Gaurav Verma said that the estimated cost for each toilet in a school is pegged at `66, 000.
Among the 2,286 toilets for boys, 46 are under construction while 2,240 are yet to be constructed in convergence with DWSD. “892 boy’s toilets out of 2,240 were handed over to DWSD on September 25 and October 2 as part of the Swachchh Bharat Abhiyan,” the JEPC officer said.
“On the other hand, 284 out of 2,488 toilets are under construction. The job to construct the left out 2,204 toilets’ construction has been trusted Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and various companies under their corporate social responsibility (CSR). SSA is covering 2093 toilets whereas 111 toilets are being covered under CSR activities of SBI, Bokaro Steel, DVC and Tata Steel. Infact, these companies have started constructing 71 toilets out of the 111 toilets,” mentioned the officer.
On the other hand, tender and rates for setting up hand pumps to provide drinking water facility in 2,348 schools has been finalised. “DWSD has begun the establishment of hand pumps since September,” another officer of JEPC said.
Sources maintained JEPC is strictly following the High Court guidelines under Sanitation Coverage Plan 2014-15. A status report on the progress of these awaited toilets and hand pumps will be presented before the High Court on October 16.
“We are targeting to complete our plan by the given deadline of High Court at any cost,” JEPC administrative officer Pradip Kumar Choubey said.