523 educational institutions damaged in Himachal: Minister

Education Minister Rohit Thakur today visited the Seraj Assembly constituency of Mandi district to assess damage caused in recent cloudbursts and flashfloods. He visited Primary School, Nihri Sunah, Degree College Lambathach, and several other educational institutions that had suffered extensive damage.

The minister, while addressing mediapersons, said that 523 educational institutions in the state were damaged in the recent rain disaster, while 109 schools were completely destroyed. In Mandi district alone, 29 institutions had been affected, 22 of which fall in Seraj.

Rohit said that the first phase of efforts to rebuild 109 fully destroyed schools would commence after the monsoon season and Rs 16 crore had been sanctioned for the purpose. The responsibility of reconstruction had been assigned to the Himachal Pradesh Housing and Urban Development Authority (HIMUDA ).

He said that the recent calamity had resulted in an estimated loss of Rs 2,000 crore in Himachal Pradesh, including around Rs 30 crore loss in the education sector. The construction of a protective boundary wall at Degree College, Lambathach, was being prioritised and Rs 6 crore would be arranged either under a World Bank-funded project or allocated in the next financial year.

To prevent such losses in future, the Education Minister said that the site selection for new school buildings would be the joint responsibility of the Deputy Director of Education, Block Education Officers (BEOs) and designated nodal agencies. He added that buildings should be constructed away from vulnerable zones such as rivers, nullahs and landslide-prone areas.

For now, completely destroyed schools located within a 1-km radius of a functional school would be merged with the nearest safe institutions. For instance, students of Nihri Primary School would now attend classes at Senior Secondary School, Nihri.

Alongside the education-related initiatives, the minister instructed the Public Works Department (PWD) to expedite the restoration of damaged roads to ensure smooth transportation of apple during the peak harvest season. He added that procurement under the Market Intervention Scheme (MIS) had already begun through the APMC. To facilitate this, five procurement centres had been established in Seraj and more would be opened at other locations soon so that local orchardists could take their produce to markets in time.