Bengal school suddenly gets wall and roof... thanks to polls

AT GADAI Char village on the banks of the Ganga in Malda district of West Bengal, labourers are busy constructing a school. For the last two years, since the mighty river gobbled up a section of its primary school during a flood, children used to attend classes in rooms without roofs, blackboards, a bench, and a table.

There is no electricity at Ghoritola Primary School, nor any toilet. But for the last few days, the “school” has been buzzing with construction activity. Labourers have been erecting new walls, laying down roofs, and even constructing a washroom. Thanks to the elections.

The primary school serves as a polling station with two booths, catering to over 1,300 voters from nearby villages.

With Malda Dakshin Lok Sabha constituency set to vote on May 7 in the third phase of elections, the workers have a week to complete the construction of the school building which will serve as polling booths.

“Two years ago, Gangaji changed its course. She flooded one portion of the village and our houses, school, and other buildings got submerged in the river. So, we had to move out,” says 50year-oldsanjibmahato,aresident of the village bordering two other states — Bihar and Jharkhand.

“The school building got ruined in the flood. Every year thereafter, the river flooded the school. It has no roof, tables, or chairs. Teachers come once or twice a month. Our children don’t know how to read and write properly,” adds Shambhu Mahato, 32.

Villagers say that most of the youth go to Delhi, Haryana, and Punjab to work as labourers. The nearest hospital is more than 12 km away in Manikchowk.

“We have to cross the river to reach the nearest town. We have no electricity. So, at night if there is some emergency, it is impossible to move a patient to the hospital in the town,” says 35-yearold Bhola Mahato.

According to a district official, Gadai Char is not the only village to be affected by Ganga changing its course. “Every year because of the erosion caused by the Ganga, several villages and buildings in Manikchowk and Kaliachowk blocks get washed away,” says Anup Chakraborty, the local BDO.

Last year, during the panchayat elections, the local administration had installed a makeshift structure that served as a polling station. “This year, we are buildingabrickstructurewithasbestos roof and toilet,” says the BDO.

“We are arranging all possible amenities for the polling officials as well as for the voters. We also are planning development projects for the village,” says Malda District Magistrate Nitin Singhania.

With no electricity supply in the village, the officials are planning to install two generators for the polling day. “We have started to install solar electricity system in the village,” says the DM.

The BDO is confident of wrapping up construction before May 7. “Two days before voting, we will install windows, doors, tables, and chairs also,” he says.

The school in Malda’s Manikchowk block.