By SUDHA BEHURA, OP
Naugaon: The government has introduced various schemes to encourage children to attend school and improve the quality of education. The ‘Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan’ was expanded into ‘Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan’ to broaden its scope.
The initiatives aim to attract children by providing nutritious meals, uniforms, textbooks, safe drinking water and toilets, while improving educational standards and school infrastructure. However, several rural schools continue to struggle due to absence of basic facilities. The Nalanga Primary School in Shikhar panchayat of Naugaon Block in Jagatsinghpur district is a case in point.
Established in 1995, the school caters to children from Nalanga, Patenigaon, Bodala and Nalikula villages in the area. While more than 60 students were enrolled earlier, the number has now dropped to 26.
The school has six classes, from Sishu Vatika to Class V. However, a shortage of classrooms has forced students of all six classes to study in a single room. Each class has a separate table, with children seated around it to attend lessons. Only two teachers are available to teach all six classes. The school also lacks an office room, while the kitchen meant for preparing midday meals is in a dilapidated condition.
The water tank has been covered with algae, raising concerns about the availability of clean drinking water. Teaching six classes in a single room has disrupted the academic environment at the school, where cooking of midday meals and handling official paperwork also take place alongside lessons.
Important school documents are kept on a table at one end of the classroom, while arrangements for preparing midday meals are made at the other. The crammed conditions have raised concerns about the quality of education. Local residents said rainwater often fills the classroom to knee level, preventing children from attending school.
The drinking water facilities are also in poor condition. Although the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Department has installed a water tank near the school, algae have accumulated on the tank and its surroundings.
Poor drainage has left stagnant water infested with insects and emitting a foul smell. The same water is reportedly used for cooking and drinking. A toilet beside the school has also become overgrown with grass and weeds. Frustrated by the lack of basic facilities, parents are shifting their children to other schools.
Headmaster Rudra Prasad Swain said the school has two rooms; one housing an Anganwadi centre and the other used for classes. Since students from multiple classes study together, teaching on the blackboard is difficult.
Teachers often instruct students individually at tables, much like private tuition. Work on a new classroom began a month ago, he said. School management committee president Sasmita Ojha said the shortage of classrooms was affecting studies and causing enrolment to decline.
Block Education Officer (BEO) Susant Kumar Mohanty was unavailable for comment. Cluster Resource Centre Coordinator (CRCC) Gangadhar Biswal said the school previously had more than 60 students. Enrolment fell to 34 in the 2025-26 academic year and has declined further to 26 this year.
Many parents have shifted their children to other schools because of the classroom shortage, he said.