Almost 75 government primary and upper primary schools in Bijnor, Uttar Pradesh have no boundary walls or have a dilapidated boundary wall. Since a majority of these schools are located near sugar cane fields, 3,500 children are in constant fear of leopard intrusion in attack-prone regions. Three leopard attacks have been reported in the last 10 days, and a 14-year-old girl was killed, as per a report by IANS.
Further, the sugar cane fields are safe havens for these leopards. As per officials, at least 150 leopards live amidst them. With cane harvesting having begun, leopard sightings have also increased in the area.
Speaking on this, a resident said, "Leopards have been attacking villagers after sugarcane harvesting. Three leopard attacks have occurred in the Nagina area in the last 10 days. A 14-year-old was killed by a leopard and two days ago, a 60-year-old woman was attacked in Fatehpur village when she was mowing grass in a sugarcane field."
Consequently, villagers are now scared to send their children to school as there is no boundary wall around it. Additionally, many schools are located on the outskirts of villages and the routes to reach them are unsafe. Similarly, teachers are also scared to take such routes.
In this regard, Basic Shiksha Adhikari (BSA) Jai Karan Yadav said, "We have prepared a proposal to construct boundaries around primary and upper primary schools for the safety of the children. The walls are to be built under MNREGA."
