Punjab: Wave of happiness in two villages due to reopening of primary schools

Punjab: People of two villages in Sidhwan Bet 2 – Khudai Chak and Chandigarh Channa – are overjoyed. The reason? Two government primary schools in these villages, which were closed for seven years, have now reopened. Not only have they reopened, but 25 students have already enrolled in each school in these villages. District Education Officer (DEO) Ravinder Kaur said, “This is indeed remarkable for everyone – the education department, the villages and the students. These two primary schools were closed due to the unavailability of teachers. But recently, the district education department has been provided with 300 new teachers, who have been appointed by the state government.” She visited the villages with her team to facilitate the admission of students.

These two schools reopened on April 1, with two teachers appointed in each school. These teachers are permanent employees, who have been temporarily accommodated on deputation. Ever since the schools have reopened, villagers have expressed their happiness and satisfaction, knowing that their children will now have access to education in their own villages. Eighty-year-old Gurmel Singh said that schools have been closed due to lack of teachers, forcing children to travel to other villages for studies. It has become difficult for many parents to drop and pick up their children from school. “This is a good thing, they can now study in their own villages,” he said. The DEO also informed that there are plans to open another government primary school in Balloke village in a few months. “We need to work on the building and the school will open soon,” he said. Currently, students are being admitted in these schools from UKG to Class V.