Bhopal: A video and pictures of girl students cleaning toilets in Guna created a stir in Madhya Pradesh. The video and pictures were shared by BJP MP Janardan Mishra and were clearly stating the condition of government schools and their toilets in the state.
The government claimed that the arrangements in schools are adequate, however, schools lack proper toilet facilities. This has been the biggest reason for girls in MP to leave school. According to a report released by the School Education Department of MP, more than 10,000 girls had to drop out of school due to non-availability of toilets or being dirty or damaged.
The report further revealed that in 98,663 primary and middle schools of the state, 2762 girls were unable to use toilets in school. Vijawan Khurd Primary School, about 70 km from Bhopal is a two-bedroom school with a registration of 7 children and the condition of the school was not fit to sit. The toilet door barely opened halfway, everything was broken from inside, and the roof was missing.
Hand wash is a must to keep children safe in the age of pandemic. However, hand washing facilities were not made in over 20000 government schools of the state. There is no provision for drinking water in 1500 schools, one and a half thousand schools do not have classrooms, 22000 classrooms are less dilapidated, and 19000 more repairs are needed.