By UTKALBANDHU PANDA, OP
Khaira: The Fakir Charan Upper Primary School in Achyutpur panchayat of Khaira Block in Baleshwar district, established in 1984, is struggling with inadequate infrastructure and a shortage of teachers, adversely affecting its academic environment. The school has 63 students in Classes VI to VIII, all taught in a single classroom.
With only two teachers, including headmaster Madan Mohan Sial, teaching has become increasingly difficult. Assistant teacher Prachiprabha Dalai is the only other teacher posted at the school. The school has been without a science teacher for a long time, making it difficult for students to receive proper instruction in the subject, the headmaster said.
Parents are reportedly considering shifting their children to other schools over concerns about their education. The school had 75 students from 2020-21 to 2024-25, but enrolment has now fallen to 63. Before the school was established, parents had to send their children to distant places such as Gandibeda and Tudigadia for education. Its opening had brought considerable relief to villagers, but its condition has now deteriorated.
The school has no proper approach road. One of its original classrooms became unsafe and was closed, leaving two concrete buildings. One is used as an office, while the other accommodates all three classes, disrupting teaching. The absence of a boundary wall has added to the problems.
Anti-social elements reportedly gather on the premises in the evening, with empty liquor bottles found scattered across the campus. The headmaster said this was having an adverse impact on students. The toilets are also in poor condition. About Rs 1 lakh was provided for school management over the past five years. The money was used to fill waterlogged areas with soil and carry out electrical repairs.
The school is also facing a land dispute. The descendants of a person who donated land for the school allegedly sold the same parcel to other people through fraudulent means. Villagers, including ward members Prafulla Chandra Das and Jyoti Narayan Sahu and village head Manoranjan Das, alleged that the silence of local elected representatives and the administration was responsible for the school’s poor condition.
The villagers have urged the Chief Minister, School and Mass Education Minister, Education Secretary, Director of Education, district Collector, Simulia MLA, district education officer and block education officer to take immediate steps to address the problems.
The headmaster said he had submitted written requests to higher authorities seeking additional classrooms and teachers. School Management Committee president Rasabihari Sahu said he would try to complete construction of the required school building and boundary wall within two years with the support of the local sarpanch.
Additional Block Education Officer Lakshmidhar Singh said the BDO had been informed about the need for a school building. He said efforts were also underway to appoint a science teacher at the earliest.