Classes at school for mentally challenged get hampered
Classes in Patuakhali Buddhi Pratibandhi School, the lone school for mentally challenged children in the district, is badly hampered as two persons are working as headmasters there.
Set up at Kolerpukurpar in Patuakhali town in 1994, the school presently enrols 127 mentally challenged children in three classes -- pre-primary class, class one and technical class.
But due to the disturbing situation centring the post of headmaster, classes are not held regularly and only 25 to 30 students now come to the school regularly.
From the beginning, four teachers including the headmaster started working there.
After headmaster Sumon Kumar Das left the school on November 1 in 2012 Nur-E-Rashid Maksuda, a senior teacher, started serving as acting headmaster as per instruction by Md Hemayet Uddin Ahmed, general secretary of Swid Bangladesh, the donor agency that provides fund for running the school.
On April 23 this year, the donor agency promoted Maksuda as regular headmaster and an official order to this effect reached the school duly. Maksuda also received salaries for the months of January to March this year as headmaster.
But on April 29, Abu Naeem, secretary of Patuakhali unit of Swid Bangladesh, issued a letter, saying that Monir Hossain, another teacher of the school, was promoted to the post of headmaster.
The local unit committee also stopped paying salaries to Maksuda although the donor agency sent her salaries from April to June.
"The donor agency made me headmaster and approved my pay scale accordingly as I have necessary qualification. Decision of the local committee is illegal," Nur-E-Rashid Maksuda said.
Monir Hossain, on the other hand, said he is conducting his job as headmaster as per decision of the local committee.
Swapan Kumer Mukharjee, acting deputy director of social welfare department in Patuakhali, said, "We only give registration to this type of school to ensure educational rights to mentally challenged children. We have no other function with such an institution."
Abu Naeem, secretary of Patuakhali unit of Swid, said, "The donor agency cannot impose any decision without taking opinion of the local committee. Everything will be okay in time."
When contacted, Amitav Sarker, deputy commissioner of Patuakhali, said, "I have heard the matter and already asked the additional deputy commissioner to check all the papers concerned. I will take step after examining the papers."
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