Fayaz Bukhari
SRINAGAR, Mar 19: The High Court today sought response from the Government to the affidavit reflecting the deficiencies in educational institutions.
The affidavit has been filed by amicus to the PIL advocate Syed Musiab indicating therein the deficiencies of infrastructure in educational institutions.
The Division Bench of Justice Mohammad Yaqoob Mir and Justice D S Thakur granted four weeks time to Government to respond to these averments made in the affidavit.
It has been reflected in the affidavit that the survey by District Information System for Education (DISE), a computerised database of schools across India, has revealed that out of the total 28,578 schools in the State, over 4,000, roughly 15 percent of the total, are still functioning from rented buildings.
“Among the bottom States in the list, the State has a meagre 3.7 average number of classrooms, as per the data. While over 7 percent of the schools have just single room, 26 per cent and 21 per cent, respectively, in J&K are with just three and two classrooms with the respective percentages of schools at the All-India level being lower than J&K”, read the affidavit.
It has also been submitted that only five more Indian States have a higher percentage of schools than J&K and only 34.82 per cent of the schools in the State have a boundary wall, revealed the data with the all-India percentage of such schools being 64.89 per cent.
“That a recent survey at all-India level has put J&K among the worst States in terms of school infrastructure and facilities for the students. Although 94 per cent of the Government schools in the State have set up girl’s toilet facility, less than 44 per cent of the toilets are functional, says the data”, affidavit revealed.
Court has also been informed that the Government has itself agreed to the fact that around 11,000 school buildings in the State were in dilapidated conditions, and 3000 other schools were operating from rented accommodations.
With regard to burning of educational institutions in 2016 unrest, it is said that the police officials have failed to perform their requisite action under the law as the present status is that among 49 cases of horrendous school burning cases, only 5 cases have been challaned before the respective Courts with no intention of expediting the trial to make possible the conviction of the perpetrators of this crime.
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