Schools in rural areas lack computers, basic infrastructure
Ambika Sharma
Tribune News Service
Solan, March 22
Several government schools, especially those located in the rural areas, lack basic facilities like availability of computers and information Communication Technology (ICT) labs despite enrolment of students for computer science.
This was despite the fact that State Education Department has provided budget ranging from Rs 15 lakh to Rs 44 lakh to select schools for enhancing its infrastructure. While budget worth Rs 60 crore has been provided to select schools in the state, others face discrimination as they lack even the basic facilities like white boards, computers, etc.,
These schemes — Swaran Jayanti Utkrisht Vidyalaya Yojna and Swaran Jayanti Gyanodaya Cluster Sreshtha Vidyalaya were among others ambitious schemes announced by the Chief Minister, Jai Ram Thakur, in the 2020-2021 to improve the quality of education in government schools.
The Government Senior Secondary School (GSSS), Haripur Sandholi, in the Baddi industrial area has enrolled 100 students for computer science but the school neither has an ICT lab nor a computer system to teach the subject to students.
The school management rues that no agency has come forward to offer computers to the school and it has requested the principle of the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) at Solan to provide surplus computers, if any, as at least 10 computers were required for the enrolled students.
“Since the students who attend the school hail from rural background, they lack computer facility even at home and hence non-availability of computers will deprive them of this key aspect of education”informed a teacher.
In yet another institute, GSSS Guggaghat in Solan district, as many as 125 students had enrolled for computer science, information technology and information technology enable services but there were barely 12 computers in working condition. Since classes for these courses are held simultaneous, the students are unable to obtain practical training of operating computers. The school management has also requested the SCERT at Solan to provide some computers as at least 10 are required to cater to the student strength.
Battling fund shortage the managements of these schools are desperately trying to arrange even old computers, while a few schools selected under various schemes had ample funds to even beautify the environs and purchase musical instruments and sports kits. “This is discriminatory for the children who study in such ill-equipped government schools as they are deprived of learning computer skills that can help them fetch jobs later”, observed a teacher who added that some of the schools did not even have white boards.
