Waterlogged classrooms force Jhajjar govt school to relocate temporarily

Heavy rainfall in the early hours of Thursday caused severe waterlogging at Government Primary School-1, located near Prasad Giri Temple in Jhajjar city, disrupting academic activities and forcing staff to temporarily shift classes to an Anganwadi centre within the campus.

The incident once again highlighted the precarious condition of the school building, which has already been declared unsafe but continues to function.

“A total of 235 students are enrolled, but only 72 turned up today due to the rain,” said Vijay Kumari, the school incharge. “The classrooms are in a low-lying area and get flooded during heavy rainfall. In some rooms, even groundwater begins to seep in. After water collected in the classrooms and lobby, we moved students to two newly constructed rooms and one room in the Anganwadi centre.”

She added that pump sets were installed on the campus to help drain out water. “Two potential sites have been identified for relocating the school. One portion of the current building has been declared unsafe and is set to be demolished. For now, we are using the safe part of the building,” she said.

District Education Officer Rajesh Kumar confirmed that action is being taken to expedite the shift. “The Block Education Officer has been instructed to ensure relocation of the school at the earliest. It will be shifted to a suitable place soon,” he told ‘The Tribune’.

Local Congress MLA and former Education Minister Geeta Bhukkal slammed the state government for neglecting the school’s infrastructure.

“The school building has been declared unsafe. Yet, children’s lives are being put at risk by continuing classes there. A new building should be constructed without further delay,” she said, demanding swift intervention from district authorities.