176 out of 386 schools in Srinagar operate from rented accommodations, lack basic facilities

Srinagar, Aug 25: As many as 176 government schools in Srinagar district are functioning from rented shabby accommodations which has thrown a major challenge for the School Education Department (SED) to improve the infrastructural standards of the government-run schools.

These schools are functioning in the rented accommodations since their establishment in the district leaving the hundreds of students at the receiving end.

As per the official figures assessed through RTI application by M M Shuja, the department has stated that out of 386 schools 176 institutions are operating from rented accommodations.

As per the official data, around 45 percent of the schools in the district lack permanent accommodation. Most of these schools lack basic facilities such as libraries and computer laboratories despite having rooms available. An official said any school operating from a rented accommodation is not entitled for any infrastructure upgrade and cannot be equipped with a computer laboratory or any other additional facilities.

"The schools operating from rented accommodations are mostly cramped and shabby. And there is no provision with the department to equip private property due to which the students enrolled in these schools are deprived of these facilities," the official said.

The official said that in most of these schools, students are crammed in small rooms with poor ventilation and insufficient lighting and deprive the students of the conducive environment for learning.

"It becomes so challenging for the department to manage these schools throughout the academic session. During summers, the students face a tough time due to extreme heat and during onset of winters, the students shiver as these schools lack proper facilities," the official said. Besides the facilities of libraries and computers, these schools do not have a playground for the school children which hinders the holistic development of students.

As part of the policy, the SED does not provide any toilet or drinking water facility for the kids in rented schools. Besides lacking basic facilities, the students in these schools are deprived of all other interventions like CAL centres or ICT laboratories as well.

“There is no provision with the department to equip schools with these facilities as the buildings are not treated as government property. At the time of hiring the private building to accommodate the schools, the building owner is directed to provide toilet and drinking water facilities. But in most of the cases, these facilities are not provided to the students,” the official said.

The official further stated that the building owner backtrack from providing basic facilities as the department does not release the rent of the building to the owner monthly.

"In some schools, the building owner threatens the department to lock the rooms if the rent is not released on time. During the past, many such cases were reported wherein the owners did not allow teachers and students to enter school due to non-payment of rent," the official said.

The schools which are operating from rented rooms have either broken windows or the roof top is partly shattered and the walls are worn out.

"These rooms where the schools are housed do not have any facets to be called as schools. Some primary schools in parts of the city operate from a single room," the official said.

Earlier, Advisor to J&K Lieutenant Governor Rajiv Rai Bhatnagar admitted the challenges faced by the SED in equipping the rented schools.

"This is a real problem and the department is aware of the situation," he had said.

Principal Secretary SED Alok Kumar when contacted said that the department is already working on a major plan to improve the infrastructural standards of schools and reduce the number of rented schools.

"In due course of time, all the government schools will be having permanent accommodations," Alok Kumar told Greater Kashmir.