<i>Future bleak as 'nation builders' in bad health</i>

All 202 students of a school found unwell

10 September 2009, 17:00 PM

E A M Asaduzzaman, Nilphamari

Malnourished and sick, students of Balagram UC Government Primary School in Jaldhaka upazila of Nilphamari district are hardly able to attend to their lessons.Photo: STAR

All the 202 students of Balagram UC Government Primary School in poverty-stricken Balagram union of Jaldhaka upazila are suffering from different diseases due to malnutrition, lack of medical facilities and unawareness of guardians. The alarming situation came to light after Jaldhaka Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) and Upazila Health and Family Planning officer (UHFPO) visited the school with a medical team to test the students' health condition last week. At first test on 65 selected students showed that all are suffering from various diseases. Twenty-five of them were found seriously sick. Being curious, the team tested all the remaining students and found them suffering from some common diseases. Many of them were found suffering from anaemia, intestine disease, malnutrition, scabies, weight loss, undeveloped mental growth etc. Most students told the team members that they come to school everyday without having meal and there is also no certainty of getting any food even after returning home from school. They feel pain in the stomach during school hours, they said. Sixty percent guardians of the school students are poor farm workers. Other guardians include rickshaw van pullers, hawkers, small traders, small farmers etc. They cannot provide sufficient food and other necessities to their school-going children. “Students of my school mostly come from very poor families. They are hardly aware of health rules. We teach the students about health rules but they have very little scope to practice it at home,” said Afzalur Rahman, headmaster of the school. Sick students cannot attend to their lessons, Jaldhaka UHFPO Shawkat Ali said, adding that his department has no separate health programme for primary schools in the upazila. Jaldhaka UNO Shahidul Islam Bhuiyan said, “It is a matter of concern that our future nation builders would grow up with such health problems. In spite of limited resources, we should do everything for them. We should persuade the wealthy people to play role in this regard.” Moved by the sorrowful health condition of the students, the UNO bought a good amount of medicine from Jaldhaka Bazar with the money he got as bonus for the Eid-ul-Fitr and distributed it to the students as per doctors' prescription, the headmaster said. The UNO also distributed three saplings of fruit bearing trees to each student.