I have been recently appointed as a primary school teacher at the Government Girls Primary School II, Shahdadkot. The pathetic condition of the school shocked me on day one, and I have yet to come out of that shock. The place is not too far away from the ruins of Mohenjodaro, and, trust me, if those who inhabited the heritage site thousands of years ago somehow get a chance to visit the said school, even they will stand shocked.
The whole infrastructure is in such a poor state that it is probably still standing on the sole basis of its willpower, or, else, it would have collapsed to the ground long ago. The worst and the most frightening thing is the crumbling ceiling of classrooms. A mishap is waiting to happen. Instead of looking at the classroom blackboard, I often find students keeping an eye on the ceiling in order to have just enough time to react if a piece of concrete falls off. The eyes of the teachers are not too different in their movements either.
One can see debris everywhere from the ceilings as well as cement coming off the crumbling walls, giving the schools a haunted look.
Besides, there is a serious shortage of drinking water, and lack of furniture to accommodate all the enrolled students who number around 600. There is no janitorial staff at all associsted with the school and that has its own consequences. Adding to the woes is the prolonged spells of loadshedding that makes it impossible for one and all to focus on the studies while sitting in dark, suffocating rooms and keeping an eye on the ceiling to stay away from the path of falling debris.
On its part, the school management has done everything possible within its domain, like keeping the authorities updated on the deteriorating condition of the school infrastructure, sending them reminders, and requesting them for funds to be able to provide a certain level of basic infrastructure and baseline facilities to the students and the staff. There has been no response from the authorities concerned. I wonder if the relevant authorities have abandoned the school. If that is not the case, one would struggle to rationalise such an apathetic attitude on their part. Where have all the funds for the government schools gone?
SAREEKA NAGPAL
SHAHDADKOT
