Students, parents seek reopening of school closed two years back due to lack of enrolment

JAJPUR:  For over a week now, students of Jhatiapada primary school under Salapada gram panchayat of Badachana block and their guardians are on a dharna before the Block Education Office (BEO) demanding reopening of the school that has been shut down since two years due to low enrolment.

Complaining that the closure has inconvenienced students, who are now forced to go to another school in a neighbouring village, the parents said, they will intensify their agitation if the village primary school is not reopened.

“We do not want our children to go to faraway places because their safety is foremost for us. Hence we want immediate reopening of our village school,” said Dushashan Dehury, a guardian. The Jhatiapada primary school was established by the State government a decade back. But it was shut down due to low enrolment in 2020 and merged with nearby primary school in Sailipada village.

Opposing  the decision, the villagers had filed a petition in the Orissa High Court in 2020 and the court had directed the authorities concerned to consider reopening the school. But the School and Mass Education department reportedly did not take any initiative in the direction.

Contacted, Badachana BEO Harihar Dalei said, “The school was shut down as it had less than 20 students as per the decision of the government in 2020 and merged with the nearby primary school. The students were enrolled in nearby Sailipada primary school.” The BEO also added, as many as 43 primary schools were closed down in Badachana block in 2020.