HYDERABAD: A special vacation bench of the Telangana High Court on Friday cautioned the state government that it would summon the chief secretary if officials fail to take a decision and issue favourable orders on repeated pleas seeking temporary relocation of a government school, which is currently functioning in unsafe conditions at Tarnaka in Hyderabad.
Justice Suddala Chalapathi Rao made these remarks while hearing a petition filed by a group of parents whose children study at the 65-year-old Government Girls Primary School (Seethafal Mandi II Vijaya Dairy School) situated at Hanuman Nagar, Tarnaka.
They challenged the alleged inaction of authorities on several representations made by them, requesting allotment of two vacant residential quarters belonging to the Telangana State Dairy Development Cooperative Federation Limited (Vijaya Dairy) for shifting classes from the crumbling structure.
The court questioned government counsel over the delay in granting temporary accommodation for the school. “What is the difficulty in allotting two quarters on a temporary basis?” the judge asked.
The court observed that considering the dangerous condition of the current school building and the safety concerns of students and staff, the government was duty bound to provide proper infrastructure and an alternative facility. “Do not delay on this. By the next date, if you do not come with positive directions to the Education department, we will summon the chief secretary. Be cautious of that,” the judge remarked while adjourning the matter for further hearing.
Appearing for the petitioners, advocate Ch Prabhakar argued that parents had repeatedly urged authorities to allocate a portion of the vacant 42-acre land parcel, earlier leased to Vijaya Dairy, for construction of a modern school building in line with the government’s stated policy of strengthening public education in urban areas.
The counsel submitted that the school, established in 1961 and catering largely to children from nearby economically weaker and slum communities, currently functions from two severely damaged “D-Type” staff quarters.
He told the court that the absence of basic infrastructure had forced students to attend classes and consume mid-day meals in the open. “Children are suffering without even minimum facilities in structures that are on the verge of collapse,” Prabhakar contended.
Calling it a violation of the students’ fundamental Right to Education, the counsel argued that children were being compelled to study outdoors despite the availability of vacant and structurally sound buildings nearby.
This story has been written by TG Naidu.
