Money sanctioned under SSA going down the drain
DSEK’s faulty planning raises questions on utilization of funds
Srinagar: As many as 1500 school buildings have been left abandoned by the School Education Department over the years, exposing the wastage of resources by the authorities at the helm of affairs.
Around 17 primary school buildings, four middle school buildings and 30 blocks which were sanctioned as additional classrooms for schools have been left abandoned in district Kupwara.
For instance, a primary school building was sanctioned in a village of Langate constituency at a cost of around Rs 14 lakh for the newly established school under SSA. But the construction of the building was left incomplete midway.
In adjacent village, another primary school building along with a kitchen shed has been constructed in the middle of a paddy field. The building has no connectivity and a person has to wade through a water canal to reach to the school building, said a source.
The haphazard construction of these school buildings has exposed the faulty implementation of the centrally sponsored schemes by the school education department. The building in this village has been left abandoned for past more than four years now, he added.
Since the inception of erstwhile Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) scheme in J&K state, the Government of India (GoI) has been pumping whooping amount for infrastructural up gradation of the schools. However, the investment is literally going down the drain in absence of proper planning in the state.
“The faulty construction of these buildings without checking feasibility has also exposed the nexus between contractors and authorities. The buildings have been constructed just to pave way for opening of new SSA schools and gaining political mileage,” an official said.
As per official figures as many as 473 SSA primary school buildings and 41 middle school buildings have been left abandoned since the inception of the scheme in the state. Also, 1001 buildings sanctioned as additional classrooms for the existing schools under the scheme have been left abandoned as well.
These school buildings have no watch and ward from the department with the result these concrete structures have become hub of illegal activities for youth who assemble in groups in these buildings during evenings.
“These abandoned buildings have become a cause of worry for the society particularly the residents of the villages where these buildings stand constructed,” an official said.
Besides, more than 800 school buildings were rendered dysfunctional post rationalization of government schools in 2015. The exercise was started in the department to streamline the pupil: teacher ratio in the government schools. The schools were left empty for having meager enrollment and the students of these schools were shifted to adjacent educational institutions.
Director School Education Kashmir, Muhammad Younis Malik said the department has in the past taken up the matter with MHRD with regard to the abandoned school buildings.
“They have agreed to release the amount to complete the construction of these school buildings,” he said.
About the dysfunctional school buildings, he said, the department has remained indecisive about the use of these school buildings.
KV News
