DINDIGUL: Neither exams nor exhaustive syllabi unnerve the 1,740-odd students at the Government Girls Higher Secondary School in Palani, as much as the chore of cleaning the 20 stained and reeking toilets at the school. They have no option but to scrub the floors themselves as the school, which falls under Palani Education District, has allegedly not appointed any sanitary workers in the last three years or initiated steps to properly maintain the toilets.
Speaking to TNIE, A Sadiq Ali, a parent said, "This is the second largest higher secondary school for girls in Dindigul district. Still, the students have to clean the toilets here. The children won't be able to get rid of the stains and as a result, they have to relieve themselves in unhygienic conditions. Sometimes, the stench is unbearable. The girls are severely upset about this issue."
Most of the children at the school hail from poor financial backgrounds, said SFI (Dindigul) secretary J Deepakraj. "Some students have also developed infections due to the toilets' condition. They are reluctant to attend classes due to this, and it may subsequently lead to them dropping out of school. After parents raised this issue a few months ago, we visited the premises and later brought the matter to the attention of the school management," he told TNIE.
When contacted, an official from the District Education Department said, "There is no provision for the school education department to appoint sanitary workers to schools. We are not sure whether the staff should be appointed by the Public Works Department or the Municipal Administration. We have alerted our senior about the matter."