DEHRADUN: As the annual and board examinations are set to commence across Uttarakhand on February 12, a harrowing reality has emerged for students residing in the state’s rugged interior.
While students in the plains worry about grades, those in districts like Rudraprayag, Chamoli, Tehri Garhwal, Uttarkashi, Pauri Garhwal, Bageshwar, Pithoragarh, Almora, and Champawat are fighting a battle for survival just to reach their examination centres.
The geographical disparity has turned the trek to school into a life-threatening ordeal. In many remote villages, students have to travel between 5 and 15 kilometres on foot to reach their designated centres. These routes pass through dense forests, desolate trails, and steep slopes—territories where leopard and bear activity has reached an alarming peak.
In recent months, these districts have reported frequent livestock kills and brazen attacks on humans in fields. The presence of bears in inhabited areas has further fuelled the atmosphere of terror.
“We cannot risk sending our children alone,” said a concerned parent from Bageshwar.
Many families are now forced to send children in large groups or pool resources for private vehicles, which often travel dangerously overcrowded on narrow mountainous roads.
Parents from across the hill belt have submitted formal petitions to the Directorate of Education, demanding a revision of the examination infrastructure. They argue that a uniform exam calendar for both plains and hills is unjust, given the vastly different safety risks and topographical challenges.
The psychological toll is equally significant. Teachers report that students are arriving at centres exhausted and gripped by “predator anxiety,” which severely impacts their concentration and confidence.
Responding to the crisis, Devendra Singh Pundir, Sub-Divisional Forest Officer of the Agastyamuni Range in Rudraprayag, stated that the department is on high alert.
State Forest Minister Subodh Uniyal assured that the government remains sensitive to the plight of the students.
Risky trek
Students in districts like Rudraprayag and Tehri fear the trek to exam centres
These districts have reported frequent livestock kills and brazen attacks on humans in fields