By Y S Rana , CHANDIGARH—Mar 19– All schools in the Union Territory of Chandigarh, private, recognized and government-aided, have sufficient facility of permanent separate toilets/urinals for both boys and girls. These include co-educational schools.
This has been conveyed by the Education Department of the UT Administration in an affidavit filed before the Supreme Court as well as in response to a query from the Central Government regarding the provision of basic facilities in schools.
Confirming the submission of affidavit in the apex court, Mr Sandeep Hans, DPI (S), Chandigarh, said, ”Administration has provided separate toilets/urinals both for boys and girls in all schools—government, private recognized and government aided. There may be variation in the number of toilets. In some schools these may be in excess in some it is less.”
He further added that provision of toilets in schools was not the only priority of the Administration but also keep these healthy and hygienic. For this purpose, the Administration has initiated a pilot project ‘Toilet blocks programme’ in collaboration with an NGO initially, on an experiment basis, in three government schools. Buoyed up the initiative, the Administration has decided to extend the ambit of the programme to other schools.
It may be recalled that the absence of sanitation facilities in schools across the country, resulting in thousands of children, especially girls, drop out of school, had made the Supreme Court intervene. The court had directed all States and Union Territories to
build permanent toilets in schools by March 31, 2012, and refused to entertain any excuses. In compliance with the apex court directions, the UT Administration has filed an affidavit in the court.
With regards to girls toilets, he said, UT is way ahead of others and Chandigarh did not figure in the list of defaulters who did not file an affidavit regarding the provision of toilet facilities in schools.
All schools in Chandigarh have not only provided separate toilets for girls and boys but also provided with electricity and drinking water facilities. Besides, more than 80 per cent government schools in Chandigarh were equipped with science labs and 75 per cent have well-stocked libraries and computer labs enabled government schools to lock horns with their leading public and convent counterparts, he added.
At the national level, 45 per cent of government-run schools lack this facility. Out of these, about 25 per cent girls’ toilets are not functional. The percentage of functional girls’ toilets is low in some states, including Andhra Pradesh (27.55), Bihar (50.53), Jharkhand (53.21), Meghalaya (46.58), Nagaland (29.76) and Odisha (44.06).
School sanitation forms an integral part of total sanitation campaign. Besides Chandigarh, Punjab (93.52), Himachal Pradesh (95) and Haryana (91) are bracketed in the first six positions across the country in terms of education development index (EDI).
States with lowest percentage of schools with girls’ toilets include Jammu and Kashmir (16), Madhya Pradesh (32.81), Odisha (37.33), West Bengal (47.99), Bihar (37.71), Chhattisgarh (33.92), Manipur (11), Meghalaya (21.56),Goa (52.62) and Gujarat (54.64).
Nearly 71 per cent of government-run schools lack boys’ toilets and over 11 per cent of them are non-functional. The percentage of schools with boys’ toilets is below 10 in four states–Andhra Pradesh (7.19), Jammu and Kashmir (8.29), Manipur (7.92) and Rajasthan (1.63).
The honorable Supreme Court should also take Suo Moto Notice of the conditions in the slums across the country, where no arrangements, for toilets, bathrooms & even driniking water,for millions of populace; livivng in these slums on the heaps of garbage & around dirty water drainage; are not available, so that this populace having been devoid of basic civic amenities can be cared for in the above said context–dr.amritgaur at:aagassociates@yahoo.in