Open drain: A drain of danger for KV students

Students of Kendriya Vidyalaya, which is running from a building of the Mata Sundri School here, are forced to play near the open drain that runs by the side of their school.

Students of Kendriya Vidyalaya, which is running from a building of the Mata Sundri School here, are forced to play near the open drain that runs by the side of their school.

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All the waste from wards number 1 and 2, along with the muck from the neighbouring city of Bassi Pathana, flows into the drain.

To make matters worse, there is no boundary wall separating the school and the drain, with hardly a 10-ft distance between the two. Moreover, there is no fence around the playground which poses a risk to students of falling into the drain while playing.

Due to dirt and waste accumulated in the drain, water has become stagnant and the drain has been converted to a filthy pond.
The school is up to Class 9 and has a strength of 300 students. The filthy water of the drain is home to various kinds of insects and reptiles, with children recounting incidents of having seen snakes in the drain.

Principal of the school, ML Dangwal, declined to comment on the issue, saying he was busy with inspection. "I cannot talk to you right now as there is an inspection going on in the school," he said.

The school was supposed to be built in Reona Ucha village that comes under Sirhind block. However, the building has not been constructed at the designated place and the school is running from the Mata Sundri School building.

Despite several attempts, Fatehgarh Sahib deputy commissioner Arun Sekhri refused to comment on the issue.