Dismal School Infrastructure Alarms Anantnag Authorities
SAMEER AHMAD
ANANTNAG, April 24: A recent inspection drive conducted by the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) Anantnag has cast a troubling spotlight on the state of government schools in Anantnag town. The inspection, led by Chief Legal Aid Defence Counsel Zakir Hussain Lone, Zonal Education Officer (ZEO) Iqpal Singh, local police officials, and court employees, aimed to evaluate both the academic atmosphere and infrastructure of several educational institutions, while also promoting awareness about the Legal Services Unit for Children (LSUC).
The joint team visited multiple government and private schools including Government Central High School Nazukh Mohallah, Government Boys Middle School Shirpora, Oxford Presentation School, and Radiant Public School. The initiative, carried out under the directions of the National Legal Services Authority (NLSA) and Jammu and Kashmir State Legal Services Authority (JKSLSA), focused on educating stakeholders about children’s right to education, ensuring transparency in the learning-teaching process, checking staff attendance, and offering legal support for school admissions and readmissions.
However, what was found on the ground painted a grim picture.
Zakir Hussain Lone, while speaking to Kashmir Dispatch, expressed grave concerns over the deteriorating condition of many government schools in the area. “Despite multiple reforms and awareness campaigns, the ground reality remains disheartening,” he said. “Poor infrastructure, absenteeism among students, and an imbalanced pupil-teacher ratio continue to hamper the quality of education.”
The inspection team also identified long-term teacher absences, lack of basic classroom infrastructure, and poor sanitary facilities in some government schools—factors that could discourage parents from enrolling their children in these institutions. The government’s annual enrolment drives, particularly those conducted every March across Kashmir, seem to have had little impact in some parts of Anantnag, with low student turnout clearly visible during the visits.
“Unless urgent measures are taken to improve the basic facilities in these schools and ensure strict accountability, efforts to strengthen public education will remain ineffective,” Lone warned.
The DLSA team also held awareness sessions at the visited schools, focusing on the LSUC and legal avenues available to parents and children for ensuring their educational rights. They emphasized that legal support is available for children who face obstacles in seeking admissions or rejoining school.
As government authorities continue to push for increased enrolment in public schools, the findings from Anantnag serve as a sobering reminder: without fixing the foundations—literally and figuratively—the vision of quality education for all may remain out of reach.
