Students lay foundation for girls' school building in Punjab

Students of a girls' school here today laid the foundation for the construction of a classroom, which is being built using funds contributed and collected by them.

The monitors of Classes VI to XII laid the foundation stone in presence of other students, teachers and school principal Nirmal Singh.

With the government turning a blind eye to their problems, students and teachers of Government Senior Secondary School for Girls have taken it upon themselves to collect funds for the renovation of their school building, part of which had been declared unsafe by the Public Works Department.

The students have so far collected Rs 1,80,000 for a room, which is estimated to cost Rs 5 lakh. "Girls have contributed from their 'golaks' (piggy bank) and have collected from well-wishers," said the principal.

All 30 teachers have also contributed and raised funds for another room, he said, adding "while I have donated Rs 51,000, others have donated anything between Rs 11,000 and 21,000. We have so far raised Rs 2.5 lakh." Arjun Singh, an Australia-based NRI relative of a teacher Jaspreet Singh, have donated Rs 70,000 for school building, said the principal.

Out of 25 rooms of the school, 18 had been declared unsafe by the PWD, school sources said, adding one room had collapsed in February and the parapet of another had crumbled sometime ago.

The school authorities gave representation to the government and some political outfits even held protests seeking immediate renovation of the school, but to no avail. There are about 1,000 students in the 70-year-old school.

PTI