MP’s singleteacher school runs from toilet in absence of building

BHOPAL/NEEMUCH: A photo of a group of primary school students studying in a toilet instead of a classroom in Neemuch district belies the tall claims of the Madhya Pradesh government about its efforts to improve education in the state.

The students are being forced to study in a disused toilet because there is no school building. The primary school run by a single teacher is not situated in a remote area but at Mokhampura village, which is only 35 km away from the Neemuch district headquarters.

Shockingly, the local MLA is not even aware that such a school exists in his constituency. The school was set up in 2012. For a year, it functioned out of a rented room.

Now, even that is not available.

A photograph of the school which has 34 children clearly shows that the room in which they are studying is a toilet that was built by the government. If that’s not bad enough, a few goats are sometimes tied in the toilet — perhaps to prevent them from getting wet in the rain.

Teacher Kailash Chandra says he has been forced to take classes in the toilet because there is no school building.

“When the weather is fine , the classes are held under a tree, but now the ground is wet so I am forced to use the toilet,” he told HT.

Chandra said he had informed officials but “no one is paying any attention” .

But Manasa BJP MLA Kailash Chawla simply refused to acknowledge that there was any school in his constituency where children were studying in a toilet.

However, district education office KC Sharma said he had written to the state education department about the situation and had sent a proposal for construction of a school building.