No pry schools in 144 out of 307 Daudkandi villages

Nearly half of children deprived of schooling

10 November 2009, 17:00 PM

Zakir Azad, Comilla

Thousand of children are deprived of schooling as there is no primary school in 144 of the 307 villages of Daudkandi upazila under Comilla district. There are 77 thousand children of school going age in Daudkandi upazila but only 40,721 of them are admitted to schools, said a teacher of Subal-Altab School in the upazila. As many gardenias find it difficult to send their kids to far away schools the children are being deprived of education while many children are engaged in household and other works. Upazila primary education office sources said the each of the 144 villages without any primary school has on an average 1205 people. Most of the villages are poverty-stricken and no primary school has been established there under private or non-government initiative too. The upazila consisting of one purasabha, 15 unions and 307 villages has a population of 3 lakh 70 thousand 60 but sufficient primary schools have not been established here, Moulana Motiur Rahman, principal of Pipiakandi Madrasa, said. "Thirteen more primary schools should be established in Zinlatoli union as every village needs at least one primary school," said Zinlatoli Union Parishad Chairman Afzajul Rahman. According to government rules, one primary school is to be established in a village of 2000 people with 200 children of school-going age, Upazila Education Officer Md Monirul Islam said. Upazila Nirbahi Officer Saifuddin Ahmed said steps are being taken to establish primary schools in villages without any such institution.