Lack of heating facilities in classrooms irks students in Srinagar

School children here have expressed their disappointment with authorities over there being no heating facilities in schools even as the cold wave intensifies.

With no heating facilities and broken window panes, many students are forced to remain inside their homes, affecting attendance in government-run schools.

Expressing their helplessness, girls who defy odds to get educated, said: "We are facing a lot of trouble sitting inside the classrooms. It is very cold inside, the windowpanes are open and some of them are damaged. There are no heating facilities in the school. Sometimes, we are forced to study in the corridors or outside where there is sunlight. Either the school should give us vacations or provide us with heating arrangements so that we can study in comfort."

Despite, witnessing numerous militant attacks, insurgency and infiltration attempts from across the border in the last two decades, there has been a sharp increase in the number of girl students in Kashmir, especially in insurgency hit areas.

Meanwhile, Director of School Education, Mir Tariq Ali, said: "We have written to the chief education officer about the need of heating facilities in classrooms. Some of the schools have such facilities. We have also instructed authorities to ensure that students study comfortably."

The Kashmir Valley is in the grip of a severe cold wave for the last fortnight. Night temperatures have dropped below freezing point.