School playground now construction site

A school playground in Tarakanda upazila was leased out to a construction firm in September 2020 and the lease has been extended till March 2022.

The lessee, Rana Builders Private Ltd, is using the playground of Taaldighi Bahumukhi High School to crush stones and stockpile stone chips being used in the repair work of Mymensingh-Sherpur road.

Students of the high school used to share the playground with students of Taaldighi Government Primary School. This was the only playground for about one thousand students of both schools. Locals used to organise different sporting events, cultural programmes and recreational activities on the ground.

But ignoring the physical and psychological wellbeing of students of the schools, the high school authorities leased out the playground for six months in September 2020, in exchange for Tk 1.2 lakh.

Moreover, they extended the lease for another 12 months for an additional payment of Tk 4.2 lakh.

Aside from being deprived of fun activities in the playground, the children of the schools are now being subjected to severe noise and dust pollution, caused by stone crushers and heaps of crushed stone.

Promi is a sixth grader at the high school. She is among many of the students who live nearby. She and several other students from the same neighbourhood said the noise pollution has made it extremely difficult for them to pay attention to classes while studying at home is not any easier either.

The dust emitted from the stone crushing site may cause respiratory illnesses such as asthma and bronchitis in children of the schools, said Ranjan Kumar Majumder, a medicine specialist who retired from Mymensingh Medical College Hospital.

The dust and noise emitted from the school ground are also unbearable for people living in the vicinity, said locals.

Mohammad Shahidullah lives with his wife and four children in Taaldighi village, in close proximity to the playground. He said, "It has become so difficult for us to stay at home that I'm thinking about moving my family to Tarakanda upazila town."

The menacing noise from the stone crushers has been making life miserable, but the school authorities were not paying heed to their repeated complaints, alleged Mohammad Khalilullah, owner of a fish hatchery in the village. 

Asked why he leased out the school playground ignoring health and safety concerns of students and locals, Dulal Chandra Sarker, the headteacher of the high school, claimed that he had to give in to tremendous "pressure from local politicians". 

He, however, did not wish to disclose names of the politicians who allegedly exerted pressure on him.

"At first, I informed locals about the pressure, but they did not come forward. Finally, I spoke with Tarakanda upazila nirbahi officer (UNO), who is also the president of the school's managing committee, and he gave permission to lease out the playground."

The lease money is deposited in the school fund and it will be spent for development work of the school, he also said, assuring that the lease would not be extended further, after its tenure ends in March next year.

Contacted, Tarakanda UNO Mizabe Rahmat said he recently joined the post after the school ground was already leased out.

He also said that he would need to examine relevant documents before taking necessary steps in this regard.