3 schools with ‘no pupils’ given MPO

The education ministry has given three schools in Dinajpur's Chirirbandar MPO facilities even though the schools have no academic activities for years.

On July 6, the authorities put South Sukhdebh Pur JU High School, Golahar JU High School, and Uttar Hazratpur Simultoli Junior School on the list of MPO-facilitated educational institutions.

All three of these schools were in a dilapidated condition with no proper structure and their students were largely missing, found this correspondent while visiting the campuses.

South Sukhdebh Pur JU High School had only three classrooms with rusted tin roofs. Bushes were surrounding the structure and the classrooms had no bench or students when this correspondent paid a visit on July 13.

Contacted, Afroza Khatun, principal of the school, said the late Ayubur Rahman Shah, former president of Chirirbandar Upazila Awami League, established the school on an acre in 1995.

The institution got permission to teach in 2000, she said, adding that they had been teaching there since then.

On July 16, when the correspondent visited again, he saw renovation work being done and benches being brought to the classrooms.

According to Afroza, the school remained closed for the last two years for the coronavirus pandemic. Locals, however, said the school never operated in the last 10 years.

A villager named Abdur Rahim also alleged that even the national flag was not hoisted regularly.

Uttar Hazratpur Simultoli Junior School is a few metres away from the Dinajpur-Parbatipur highway.

Visiting the school on July 13, this correspondent found no student.

The structure was surrounded by bushes, indicating the school hardly held any class in years.

Nazrul Islam, a teacher of the school who was chatting with some people there, claimed they had 90 students.

Asked about their presence, he kept mum.

The school was established in 1998 and it got teaching permission after two years.

Golahar JU High School was in a similar condition. This correspondent found no student on the campus on July 13.

Some workers were repairing the school building.

Asked, Chandrakanta Roy, headmaster of the school, said "Our school is active. No student came to school today as there is an event at the village."

Locals, however, said the school remained closed for the last several years.

Contacted, Upazila Education Officer Fazle Elahi said his office had nothing to do with the process as everything was online.

All these enlisted schools would be brought under surveillance, he added.