Live Mint : Rs258 crore makeover for 200 Delhi government-run schools : Oct 10,2007
mint EXCLUSIVE – SANITIZATION DRIVE – Rs258 crore makeover for 200 Delhi
government-run schools
Most schools are dirty and lack basic sanitation and drinking water;
project to be executed by DSIIDC We plan to renovate 472 toilets and build
368 new ones; blackboards will be replaced by green boards. RK Gupta, Chief
engineer, DSIIDC
B Y M AITREYEE H ANDIQUE & A PARNA K ALRA
NEW DELHI
E leventh-grader Sangeeta Singh avoids drinking water in school. The gi ant
tank outside the main building of Rajkiya Sarvoday Balvidyalay in East
Delhi’s Kalyanpuri is filled by municipal taps-but the water is not
filtered.
Even in one of the largest schools run by the Delhi government-so big that
there are two separate shifts-teachers advise the 3,900 students to bring
their own water from home. “We can fall ill, so we have no other choice,”
said Singh.
Now, the government plans to upgrade the infrastructure of 200 buildings in
New Delhi from where 318 schools operate, often in dirty, dusty conditions
lacking basic sanitation and drinking water. The project, which will cost
Rs258 crore, is expected to begin in three months.
IL&FS Education & Technology Services Ltd, the Rs80 crore education
infrastructure development arm of the finance company, has been hired to
design modern infrastructure for the identified schools in the populated
eastern parts of the city, and in the north-east and north-west corners,
where a majority of the poor live.
The project will be executed by the Delhi State Industrial & Infrastructure
Development Corp. Ltd (DSIIDC).
The Delhi government has an education budget of Rs11,000 crore this year.
“There has been a lot of improvement in academic performance. Within two
years now, we want to change the face of these schools with proper
classrooms and better toilets,” said education minister Arvinder Singh
Lovely.
The cabinet is expected to clear the improvement budget within a fortnight.
About a million students attend 1,162 schools run by the Delhi government,
separate from those run by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi or the Union
government. On a double shift, Delhi government schools operate out of 652
buildings.
Nearly 30% of the classrooms have roofs made of asbestos sheets, posing
serious health risks. Many don’t have toilet facilities, and not a single
one meets new fire guidelines.
“Our focus will be on build ing physical infrastructure, correct structural
weaknesses as well as include teaching aids in building design,” said
Pradeep Singh, managing director of IL&FS Education & Technology Services.
The company, which offers integrated multimedia solutions for training
students, is also assisting 152 Municipal Corporation of Pimpri Chinchwad
schools in Maharashtra to train teachers in primary and secondary education
and improve technology infrastructure. It is in talks with at least two
other state governments for a similar education infrastructure building
initiative.
According to R.K. Gupta, chief engineer at DSIIDC, the project aims to build
more durable schools, as well as modernize their infrastructure.
“Various parameters such as earthquake resistance, fire safety and rainwater
harvesting are being considered. We plan to renovate 472 toilet blocks and
build 368 new ones. Blackboards will be replaced by green boards,” he said.
Delhibased architects Pradeep Sachdeva, who designed the Dilli Haat market,
and M.S. Satsangi have been hired as consultant architects.
Officials say Delhi schools’ woes stem from negligence and poor oversight
from the Public Works Department, which has an annual budget of Rs70-75
crore to look after the school properties. With a shift towards privatizing
maintenance contracts, the government in February tapped DSIIDC to handle
some tasks.
Schools also receive a sepa rate grant of Rs1.2 lakh for maintenance under a
scheme called Vidyalaya Kalyan Samiti, a citizen-government partnership
programme of the Delhi government. Members include a local legislative mem
ber, important citizens and school principals.
This amount has been increased to Rs4 lakh this year, but at least one ad
ministrator of an East Delhi school said, on the con dition of anonymity,
that it’s not easy to access grant, and the practice is riddled with cor
ruption and bu reaucratic red tape. “This is like a system within a system.
If you follow the rule, things get along in a nice way, otherwise not. Many
times you face objections and queries.”
While the government has the budget to operate schools, the challenge lies
in how it can streamline disbursal of funds. Many say the larger problem
rests in changing attitudes of the school itself.
On a recent afternoon, for example, a pile of garbage sits just a few metres
away from the kindergarten classes at the Kalyanpuri school. The school has
at least four sweepers, and the staff has a long wish list still.
“We need a hall to hold meetings and cultural functions. We also need cycle
and scooter stands,” said Prithviraj Meena, principal of the Kalyanpuri
evening school.
Schools said private contractors can make a difference. Satya Pal Yadav,
principal of Government Co-education Secondary School in Vinod Nagar, said:
“Certainly the school is much cleaner after we hired private sweepers
recently.”
maitreyee.h@livemint.com