Dilapidated govt school poses grave risk to students in Burgampadu

A 35-year-old government school in Cheruvu Singaram, Burgampadu, is in a hazardous condition, with falling ceiling slabs and exposed wires. Parents and teachers demand urgent intervention as classes are temporarily shifted to a nearby Anganwadi.

Kothagudem: A Government Primary School at Cheruvu Singaram village in Burgampadu mandal, built nearly 35 years ago, has fallen into a dangerous state, posing a serious threat to the lives of both students and teachers.

The school building is crumbling, with pieces of the ceiling slab frequently falling and rusted iron rods now exposed. In a recent incident, large portions of the slab came crashing down, but as it occurred when the school was closed, no one was injured.

Parents say the building has been unsafe for years. “Whenever cement from the ceiling falls, temporary repairs are done but they do not last. There has been no proper maintenance at the school for the past couple of years,” complained a parent, Balaram.

He added that rainwater stagnates on the roof and seeps into classrooms, further weakening the walls. “Students often suffer electric shocks due to seepage into electrical wiring,” he lamented.

According to parents and teachers, repeated appeals to local MLA Payam Venkateswarlu and education department officials have gone unheard. “Officials visited the school a few times but no measures were taken,” they said.

With around 35 students on the rolls, classes are now being conducted in a shed at a nearby Anganwadi centre, as children are too afraid to enter the classrooms after the recent incident.

Balaram urged the MLA and the department to sanction a new school building immediately, pointing out that most children at the school come from poor families who cannot afford private education.