KENDRAPARA: Around 231 students including 91 girls and 10 teachers remained stranded inside a government-run residential school in Pattamundai block for the third consecutive day as floodwaters showed no signs of receding on Monday.
The Ashram school at Kulasahi village under Penthapala panchayat was marooned after floodwaters from Brahmani river inundated the area on Saturday. Officials said the district administration has decided against evacuating the students as they were safe inside the school building. “All the students are safe and in good health inside the school,” said Pattamundai block education officer (BEO) Ajit Barik.
Kendrapara collector Raghuram R Iyer also said there was no need to evacuate the stranded students and teachers as of now. “We are monitoring the situation.”
However, the decision to not evacuate the students angered several parents and guardians. “I have been sleepless for the last two nights as my 12-year-old son is stranded in the school. The authorities should rescue all the students immediately,” said Sanjay Mallick (43) of Pattamundai.
Headmaster Soumendra Das said the floodwaters rose rapidly from Saturday morning and submerged the first floor of the school building. The students were shifted to the second floor, where they have remained safe. The school had stocked food supplies for a week, ensuring that the students have sufficient food.
Meanwhile, incessant rainfall triggered flash floods in several riverside villages in Aul, Pattamundai and Rajkanika blocks. The district administration was relocating families from low-lying areas to schools, colleges and cyclone shelters by boats and providing them food and other relief materials.
Social worker Amarbara Biswal said many villagers were still trapped in their homes with limited food supplies, while others who had moved to higher ground were also running short of essentials. With several villages affected and limited rescue personnel available, riverside communities remain at high risk amid forecasts of continued heavy rain.