Students of the primary school at Bag-e-Inayat Ullah in Pampore education zone in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district are suffering as their school has been locked due to a land dispute in the village, leading to the blocking of the lane leading to the school.
Teachers said the families residing there indulged in abusing the students and teachers and tried to disturb the learning environment.
“The dispute between two families on way to the school has compelled us to lock the school as students had to face the brunt of the disputing families. Sometimes they were brutally beaten or chased,” said Bashir Ahmad Khandey, one of the two teachers working in the school.
He further said he had brought the matter to the notice of the high-ups in March this year, but they did not respond timely, compelling the closure of the school.
“No one from the high-ups visited the school till it was locked. Education and revenue officials are yet to resolve the issue with the disputing families, which has taken a toll on education of students,” said Farooq Ahmad, a resident of Bag-e-Inayat Ullah locality.
The students had been shifted to the government middle school at Meej, which was about one km from the Bag-e-Inayat Ullah locality.
The families of students said they were regretting that they had admitted their wards to this school, forcing their children to suffer because of official apathy.
“I admitted my child to this school in order to get education, but he has learnt nothing except abusive language which he has acquired from these families. I thought that the matter would be sorted soon, but its prolonging barred his education,” said Showkat Ahmad, father of a five-year-old student.
He added that the government school was the only way to allow his ward to get education as he was short of resources to send him to a private school. Chief Education Officer, Pulwama, Abdul Hamid Kumhar, said the matter had been brought to his notice.
