Leaky roofs, termite-eaten wooden pillars and heaps of garbage are not welcome sights. But the students of the Government High School, Vanchiyoor, may have to face all these when they return to school after the Onam vacation on Tuesday.
Though the school authorities had sent repeated requests to the city Corporation at the beginning of the academic year itself about the plight of the school’s infrastructure, no work has been taken up till now. With heavy rain lashing the city last week, the situation has worsened.
A large tarpaulin sheet was drawn over the leaky roofs of three classrooms last month to prevent rain from soaking the classrooms. All the 47 students of the school wrote the Onam examinations under these circumstances. But now even the tarpaulin sheet has failed to ward off the rainwater. The heavy showers also brought down one of the pillars in the veranda, and some of the remaining wooden pillars are also in a termite-eaten state.
“We had written in detail about the maintenance work to be taken up prior to the monsoon. The last major work taken up by the Corporation was in 2007. I doubt if any work will be taken up before the school reopens,” said school principal G. Prasanna.
As if this misery was not enough, the school premises have become almost a dumping ground with garbage is being dumped at the entrance to the school. A wall poster near the entrance reads that “it is punishable to dump waste near the school compound.” But heaps of rotten waste in plastic bins can be seen right below the wall poster.
“We are worried about the safety and health of our students, especially in the rainy season. The school will register a complaint against the dumping of garbage near the school,” said Ms. Prasanna.
School authorities have been making an earnest effort to improve the results of the school and provide maximum support to the students by conducting evening classes and providing special coaching to students, most of who come from financially backward families.
The efforts of the authorities found fruition last year when all five students who appeared for the SSLC examination from the school cleared the examination with good grades, unlike in the previous years.
