When schools opened in May, Ibrahim Syed of Saibanakoppa village decided to send his five-year-old daughter Anjum to an Urdu-medium school at Uppina Betageri, 2.5 km from his village.
However, within a week, he realised how difficult it would be for his daughter to commute between Saibanakoppa and Uppina Betageri as there is no bus that goes from his village. Anjum is now back at Saibanakoppa Government Lower Primary School, a single teacher school with a total strength of seven this year.
No buses
The village is hardly half a km from the Dharwad-Bailhongal Main Road, but no bus stops at the cross that leads to the village, forcing the villagers to walk to Uppina Betageri, barring a few who have bicycles or two-wheelers.
For the last four years, Bharati P. Walmiki has taught at the single teacher school, which was started in 2004-05 after much lobbying by the village elders. The village has 20 households, and most residents are Dalit or Muslim landless daily-wage labourers.
Stream in spate
“Our children started going to school only after this school was started. The halla (stream) that passes along the village is often in spate during the rainy season,” says Nirmala Talawar, who works as an ayah in the anganwadi.
Now the first batch of four high school students go to Betageri on bicycles given to them by the Government. During the rains, their teachers send them home early as a precaution. However, Deepa Talawar, Siddiq Natangar and Nagaraj Holehadagali are not as lucky. These Class VI students walk to school, as the school in their village is up to Class V only.
What if the government decides to close their school for lack of numbers?
“I will not go to Betageri. It is too far,” says Sagar Vittal Talawar, who is in Class I now. His brother Mahadevappa in Class III has the same answer. Siblings Jyoti and Akash seem intimidated by the very idea of going to Betageri school.
Future uncertain
Although the school is presently not in the list of schools to be merged with others, the news of the move by the Government has led to considerable anxiety. Nirmala Talawar feels that people like the SDMC chairman Nagappa Diwatagi will oppose any such move. “This is a question of our children's future. If this school closes, many will drop out of school,” she says.
SDMC chairman Nagappa Diwatagi was shocked to learn of such a move by the Government. “How can they say that they will close schools?” he asks incredulously.
Mr. Diwatagi and others in the village want a bridge to be constructed across the stream and a request stop for their village. “If it is done, it will be of great help to us including the children who go to Betageri for higher primary and high school,” he says.
