Govt, villagers lock horns over construction of school building

Residents of Garnawathi village in Rohtak district and the government officials have locked horns over the construction of a government school building at the village.

As per sources, the building of Government Senior Secondary School at Garnawathi village was demolished in 2017 after being declared condemned.

No amount deposited

The villagers are claiming that the Garnawathi panchayat had deposited an amount of Rs 5.43 crore for the construction of the school building, but no such amount had been deposited as per government record. — Manjeet Malik, district education officer, rohtak

Villagers assert that in 2019, the village panchayat deposited an amount of Rs 5.43 crore with the government for the construction of a new building of the school.

However, the officers concerned maintain that the village panchayat might have passed a resolution in this regard, but it did not deposit the said amount.

A number of villagers staged a protest in Rohtak on Monday, demanding the construction of the school building and repair/maintenance/reconstruction of the dilapidated buildings of several other schools at Dobh, Kabulpur, Masudpur, Mokhra, Kahnaur, Balambha and Bahu Akbarpur villages in the district.

The protesters also submitted a memorandum addressed to the Chief Minister to the District Development and Panchayat Officer in this regard.

Rohtak District Education Officer (DEO) Manjeet Malik refuted the claim of the village residents.

"The villagers are claiming that the Garnawathi panchayat had deposited an amount of Rs 5.43 crore for the construction of the school building, but no such amount had been deposited as per government record," the DEO maintained.

She said the district authorities had been apprised of the matter and further action would be taken as per their directions.

The officer asserted that the construction/repair of the buildings of the other schools was in process at different stages.

On the other hand, Rohtak Zila Parishad member Jaidev Dagar countered the claim of the DEO, pointing out that in a communique sent to the Public Works Department, Haryana in 2022, the state Directorate of School Education had clearly mentioned that the Garnawathi panchayat had deposited an amount of Rs 5.43 crore for the construction of the school building.

Dagar claimed that the number of students at the Garnawathi school had dropped by 100-150 in the past few years due to lack of a proper school building.