Waterlogged road every monsoon forces these Gurugram students to miss school

Hundreds of students, of government primary and senior secondary schools, and a private school, at Gairatpur Baas village are skipping classes as the road leading to their schools is waterlogged.

Nearly 1,500 students from the village go to the government and private school to study and a majority of girls skip classes during the monsoon season, villagers alleged.

Of the 400 students of Gairatpur Baas Panchayat School, 100 girls skip school between June and September, it is estimated.

“Girl students skip classes as they do not feel comfortable travelling on the busy stretch, on which motorists also have to dodge potholes. Their uniform gets spoiled and they allege that miscreants intentionally cross the stretch to spill water on their uniforms,” Nisha Yadav, the principal of Gairatpur Baas Panchayat School, said.

Parents alleged that their daughters refuse to walk on the stretch, which has not been fixed in the last 10 years. “My daughter is in class 8 and she feels harassed as boys make fun of them while they navigate the waterlogged stretch. She refuses to go and starts crying if we force her,” Kavita Rathi, a resident, said.

The villagers said the condition of the road is deteriorating with each passing year.

Gairatpur Baas is located on the foothills of the Aravallis, which is 15 kilometres from the city, and the 1.5-kilometre stretch leading to the schools is waterlogged since the onset of monsoon.

Villagers said the panchayat is struggling to get the road leading to the schools fixed, but no one from the administration has taken action.

Amit Rathi, a social activist from the village, said they have written to Rao Narbir Singh, the public works department (PWD) minister, around 20 times in the last six months and met him, but to no avail. “He is unhappy with us as the villagers did not cast their vote in his favour in the 2014 assembly elections,” Rathi said.

Singh refuted the allegations, saying he would get the stretch inspected and the department to soon float a tender to construct the road.

“There are many stretches on which work is pending and these are being inspected, one by one. Until the road is constructed, we will make sure that patchwork is done on the stretch and children do not have to skip school due to waterlogging,” Singh said.

Villagers alleged that four kilometres of the road connecting the village is riddled with potholes and broken. After a short rain spell, the road is inundated, as there is no outlet for the overflow from a pond in the vicinity.

Yadav said the school management committee had taken up the matter with the village panchayat several times, but to no avail.

The villagers said they have written to the district education officer, Dinesh Shastri, as well for his intervention to reach a solution. Shastri said he is not aware of the issue and has asked his staff to contact the school principal on Wednesday.

“I have asked them to call the principal and seek a written complaint, which we will forward along with an application to the additional deputy commissioner. We will ensure the problem is resolved at the earliest and children do not have to skip school due to waterlogging,” Shastri said.

Shastri said the role of the education department is limited to the activities within the school premises and it is the duty of the village panchayat to find a solution to the problem.

Motorists are also facing a tough time commuting on the stretch. “Our efforts to reach officials concerned and leaders have not yielded any results. Roads are almost non-existent in the village. All the schools are on the potholed stretch leading to Badshahpur. Parents are concerned about the safety of children. It is not safe to commute on the road, especially if it rains,” Ved Ram Rathi, a senior citizen, said.

Villagers said it would be helpful if the department fills potholes with debris or puts signboards to caution drivers. “Until then, we are just waiting for a tragedy to happen,” Sanay Rathi, a villager who works with an MNC in Gurugram, said.