THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The students of the 10 Government Regional Fisheries Technical High Schools (GRFTHSs) in the state are suffering due to poor facilities, according to a study report by ‘Rights’, a city-based NGO.
“Poor academic standards and the pathetic state of the hostels force the students to discontinue studies and the average dropout rate is 19.75 percent,” said V B Ajayakumar and Riyasudeen, office-bearers of ‘Rights’.
The report said the schools, established to improve the educational standards of the children of fisherfolk, have missed the target. A total of 487 children study in the 10 schools against a sanctioned strength of 1,200.
Unlike the model residential schools for students belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Tribes, GRFTHS students are not eligible for free uniform, night dress, notebook, soap and oil.
The government grant for food for a child is Rs 50 a day, a paltry sum insufficient for three meals and morning and evening tea, the report said.
The hostels lack proper sanitation and infrastructure facilities. The toilets and bathrooms of many hostels are in a dilapidated condition. Sufficient number of study tables, chairs and cots are not available, says the report.
The report submitted to the government has made a slew of recommendations. They include constituting a state-level monitoring committee for hostels and raising the monthly food grant for a student from Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,500.
The other recommendations are repairing of the hostel buildings, providing free uniforms, supply of provisions at subsidised rates to the hostel canteens and setting up smart classrooms and sick rooms in the schools.