Jaipur: At least 5,500 govt schools in Rajasthan are dilapidated and need to be rebuilt from ground up, says a preliminary survey after a school collapsed in Jhalawar leaving seven kids dead barely two weeks ago. The dilapidated tally is around 9% of 63,000 such schools surveyed in the state.The state education department, which conducted the survey, identified 85,000 school rooms that need to be demolished, and 2.5 lakh in urgent need of major repairs. Additionally, 15,000 school toilets were found dilapidated, while another 25,000 required major repairs.“Most buildings identified as dilapidated are over 30 years old. However, new buildings also need regular maintenance, failing which their condition will deteriorate gradually,” an official said. Officials said the survey had laid the ground for a detailed structural audit in the next 30 days with govt engineers and teams of district collectors.Sources said at present, every school in the state was allocated Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 annually for overall maintenance. This amount, however, is usually spent on paying bills, regular upkeep and cleanliness, procuring stationery, among other small expenses, with barely anything left for infrastructure maintenance.“Funds are being issued but until a proper budget is allotted for upkeep and maintenance of school buildings, the problem cannot be resolved. At present, funds are prioritised as per condition of schools,” a senior official said.The state had sanctioned around Rs 170 crore for major repairs in 1,936 schools on July 29, four days after the school building collapse in Jhalawar. Education minister Madan Dilawar pledged more. “Budget has been released on priority for 1,936 schools and Rs 150 crore will be spent on repairs of 7,500 more schools,” Dilawar said.
