400 students, staff trapped as floodwaters inundate Navodaya school in Punjab's Gurdaspur

Nearly 400 students and 40 staff members are feared to be trapped in rising floodwaters at Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, located in Daburi village, approximately 12 km from Gurdaspur.

The school, situated along the Gurdaspur-Dorangla road, has become inaccessible due to the severely damaged roads leading to it, hampering the ongoing rescue operation.

Adding to the challenge, senior officials are currently preoccupied with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s scheduled visit to Behrampur in the Dinanagar sub-division.

The CM is expected to arrive by helicopter at Dinanagar before proceeding to Behrampur, and preparations for his visit have engaged officials since last night.

Daburi village, where the school is located, also falls under the Dinanagar sub-division. Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya is a boarding school, part of a Central Government initiative, with the Gurdaspur Deputy Commissioner serving as its chairman.

Parents have expressed anger and disbelief over the administration’s inaction.

One parent questioned why the students were not sent home earlier, especially when the district authorities were aware of the impending flood situation three days ago. He questioned the logic of keeping students at the school when a three-day holiday had already been declared for all schools in Gurdaspur district.

According to sources, Kiran Nullah, which flows adjacent to the school, has not been cleaned in years. Its poor maintenance has led to the accumulation of floodwater in and around the school premises.

Locals warn that the current water levels surpass those seen during the devastating 1988 floods. They also point out that the school stands in a flood-prone area where inundation occurs almost annually.

The land for the school was given free of cost by the Daburi village panchayat for the institution’s construction.