The elementary school in Murkundi Dassahi, in the Salepur subdivision of Cuttack district, has been running out of a Shiva temple complex for about seven years now.
You may have seen headlines about how schools in Odisha have undergone significant change recently, but would you think that the state still has a primary school that operates on temple grounds? It may sound odd, but it’s true.
The elementary school in Murkundi Dassahi, in the Salepur subdivision of Cuttack district, has been running out of a Shiva temple complex for about seven years now. The students’ daily routine now consists of such stop-gap arrangements because their school lacks its own grounds.
As a result, the students must endure terrible weather conditions all year long to attend the temple of learning inside the Shiva temple grounds.
Since all of our books become wet when it rains, we are unable to study here. We have a lot of issues with the heat during the summer as well,” a pupil added.
Another student claimed that the holiday season interferes with their ability to study. In addition, wandering animals like monkeys are a constant threat.
According to Nrusingha Charan Das, the school’s headmaster, it opened its doors to seven students in 2015. After some time, there are now 40 pupils enrolled, and 21 of them have already completed their fifth-grade schooling.
Own infrastructure is a significant barrier. The Jagatsinghpur administration had given us Rs 6.90 lakh, but we were unable to use them because we lacked our own land. The money was then reimbursed. We want the authorities to take action so that the school can obtain a building, added Das.
According to Jagabandhu Satpathy, the Salepur Block Education Officer (BEO), “Monies were sanctioned for the construction of a building, but as the school had no land, the funds could not be used. Recently, word came to us that a land patta had been issued. For the building of the school, we have written to the higher authorities.
Prasanta Patnaik