By Bikash Kumar Dhal, OP
Banta: Despite government schemes and crores of rupees being spent to improve education, lack of initiative among departmental officials has left several development works incomplete at Bankatira High School under Kadabarang panchayat in Bhadrak district’s Banta block.
The school lacks adequate classrooms, toilets, drinking water and a proper academic environment, with poor infrastructure hampering students’ education. Established in 1987, the school has completed 38 years. This academic year, 148 students are enrolled in three classes.
Classes VIII and IX are being conducted in two classrooms, while 56 Class X students attend lessons in an unsafe asbestos-roofed building. Due to a shortage of classrooms, the high school office is functioning from a room belonging to the middle English (ME) school. The school has four teachers and one fourthgrade employee.
Two Trained Graduate (Arts) teacher posts, besides Hindi and physical education teacher posts, are vacant. The school also needs an office assistant and two more fourth-grade employees. There is no drinking water facility or adequate toilet provision for students and teachers.
The absence of a permanent boundary wall allows cattle and anti-social elements to enter the premises, posing a safety risk. The playground is also unusable because of poor maintenance, while the school lacks a science laboratory and necessary equipment. Under the 5T initiative, Rs 40 lakh was sanctioned to the BDO’s account in 2021-22 for construction of two classrooms, a science laboratory and an e-library. Another Rs 5 lakh was sanctioned to the headmaster’s account for related expenses.
However, the funds could not be utilised and the works remain incomplete. Consequently, Class VIII students are forced to sit on the floor during lessons. Parent Niranjan Barik said he enrolled his son in Class VIII after being encouraged by the teachers’ efforts and enthusiasm. He said the school could improve further if attention was given to its basic problems. School management committee president Ramesh Chandra Pahi said the block administration’s failure to complete development works despite availability of funds raised questions about the department’s functioning and was affecting students’ future.
Staff shortages were another major obstacle, he said, calling for an urgent permanent solution. Headmaster Brahmananda Bhuyan said staff shortages and the lack of a proper academic environment were affecting the quality of education. A student secured an A1 grade in last year’s matriculation examination, bringing recognition to the school at the block level, he said.
Filling vacant posts could further improve educational standards, Bhuyan added. BDO Sitakanta Rout said he was aware of the various development-related problems at the high school and assured that steps would be taken to resolve them soon. Bhadrak Additional District Education Officer Jagabandhu Sahu said the department was aware of the issues and would take steps to address them, keeping students’ future in mind.