In Ludhiana, CJP praises facilities at School of Eminence, flags infra gaps in others

While the team praised the modern facilities at the School of Eminence (SoE) in Sector 32, it flagged poor washroom facilities, hygiene concerns and ageing infrastructure at two government schools in Jandiali.

A visit by Saurav Das, co-convener of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), and his team to government schools in Ludhiana has brought into focus the stark contrast in infrastructure across Punjab’s government education system.

Saurav Das, co-convener of the Cockroach Janta Party, and his team during a visit to School of Eminence (SoE) in Sector 32, Ludhiana. (HT)

While the team praised the modern facilities at the School of Eminence (SoE) in Sector 32, it flagged poor washroom facilities, hygiene concerns and ageing infrastructure at two government schools in Jandiali.

Das appreciated the infrastructure, including the swimming pool, ramps, AI lab and a computer lab at the School of Eminence. He said the facilities at the school were, in several respects, better than those available in private schools.

Punjab has around 19,000 government schools, while the state government has announced 118 Schools of Eminence. However, only some of the proposed schools have been inaugurated.

The CJP team subsequently visited Government Senior Secondary School, Jandiali. Das said the school was established in 1936 and had largely retained its old infrastructure despite maintenance work carried out over the years.

Describing the school’s infrastructure as outdated, he said the government needed to focus on improving facilities for students studying there.

“The infrastructure is very old. I hope these children also get better infrastructure and the Punjab government pays attention to this,” he said.

The visit also highlighted a shortage of sanitation facilities, particularly for girls. The school has around 500 girls but only three washrooms for them, with some reportedly lacking doors. The condition of the girls’ washrooms was described as poor, while the staff washroom was found to be in comparatively better condition.

The team also visited Government Primary School, Jandiali, where Das appreciated the efforts of teachers to make the school environment more creative. However, he again raised concerns over the maintenance of washrooms.

“The teachers have worked hard and done creative work, but the infrastructure is very old. No matter how much an old building is maintained, it cannot provide facilities like a School of Eminence,” he said.

Education minister Harjot Singh Bains welcomed the visit and the independent assessment of government schools. In a social media post, he thanked Das for visiting the schools and said the government was open to feedback and public scrutiny. Bains said he had taken note of the shortcomings highlighted by the team and would personally monitor their resolution.

The observations, however, drew criticism from teachers’ organisations, which said improving school buildings alone would not resolve the larger challenges facing government education.

Lecturer Cadre Union state finance secretary Dharamjeet Singh Dhillon said the government should focus equally on filling vacant posts of teachers and principals and reducing the burden of non-academic duties on teachers.

Visit triggers row

Das’ visit to the schools triggered a political controversy with BJP leader and former Union minister Ravneet Singh Bittu calling it a “staged PR spectacle”. Bittu questioned the significance of Das visiting just one such school. Bittu said he had recently visited the same school and raised concerns over its dilapidated swimming pool and poor playground conditions. He questioned why these shortcomings were not shown to Das during his visit. “Punjab’s children deserve functioning facilities, quality education and accountability, not PR exercises dressed up as governance,” Bittu said.

Democratic Teachers’ Front district president Daljit Singh Samrala questioned the authority of the team to inspect government schools.

“Who is Saurav Das to visit our schools? What authority do they have? They should not intervene in our schools like this. If they want to do something good for the education system, they should look at surveys on vacant posts and other shortcomings in schools,” he said.