Most govt schools fail to submit water report

Sukhmeet Bhasin

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, December 17

Government schools seem least bothered about getting their drinking water tested as despite directions from the District Education Officer last month, only around 36 schools out of 273 schools in the district have sent their report after getting its water tested.

On November 22, the District Education Officer (DEO) had written a letter to all heads of the government schools, in which she had stated that as per the instructions of the Deputy Commissioner all the schools in the district should ensure clean and good quality drinking water to the students and all the schools should get their quality of water tested from the water testing lab of the water supply department. It was also directed that all the schools should send the report of the water test conducted to the department till November 30.

Only around 36 schools out of 273 government schools in the district have sent their report. Irked over which the DEO had again issued a letter to the schools who did not send the report on time and had told them by December 16, all the schools must have sent the report on the e-mail of the department.

It is not clear as to how many schools have submitted the reports to the office as December 16 and 17 were holidays, but it has raised a question over the lack of drinking water facilities for the students in the government schools.

Even health department team had not taken an initiative to check the water supplied to the students in schools. Sonu Maheshwari, president of NGO Naujawan Welfare Society, said “The condition of government schools is very pathetic as there is no proper clean drinking water. Even there are no proper seating arrangements for students and in many schools student still sit on the floor and study”.

He said, “I wonder what governments are doing as before the elections they make tall promises, but after coming to power, they totally turn blind toward this education sector, which urgently needs a revamp. Even in schools where the department has installed RO plants, schools heads or panchayat members are not serious about keeping them in proper functional order.

Gian Chand Bansal, a social activist, said instead of depending on the reports to be submitted by the school heads, the Education Department must coordinate with the parents, especially of students studying in rural areas. The parents will give the department a fair report. Surprise checking and frequent water sampling must be done to ensure that the water being provided to students in government schools is fit for drinking.

Vijay Goyal, president of NGO Sahara Jan Sewa, said providing clean drinking water was a major basic amenity for the state government. The department should cut other expenses and instead should focus on providing clean drinking water to the students in schools.

District Education Officer (DEO) Maninder Kaur said, “Drinking water facility is good in all the government schools in the district as the department had installed a RO plant in most schools and where the department has not provided these, banks have installed small RO plant in government schools”.