Chennai: Garbage is the first thing that students see on entering Government Ambedkar Higher Secondary School in education minister Rajmohan’s constituency, Egmore. From plastic waste to liquor bottles and construction debris, a portion of the school grounds is perpetually occupied by discards. But the civic body and school education department have been passing the buck, leaving more than 300 students in the lurch.
Government Ambedkar Higher Secondary School in education minister Rajmohan’s constituency, Egmore
Staffers said that the waste not only affects hygiene on school premises, but also deprives students of a play area. “Much of the waste is dumped on the vacant land abutting the school grounds. Sometimes wet waste spills on to school grounds and emanates a foul smell,” a school staff said, adding that repeated complaints have done little to redress the issue.TOI visited the premises on Gandhi Irwin Road adjoining the Buckingham Canal multiple times in the past week, and found that the school gate is broken and remains open round the clock. Overgrown vegetation and shrubs surround the gate, and there is no compound wall separating the vacant land where waste is dumped and the school.“Anyone can go in and out of the facility at any time. Garbage is cleared occasionally after complaining. But it reappears in a few days. When it rains, the uncleared garbage increases the mosquito menace as well, ” said a staff at the district education officer (private schools) office on the campus.Chennai chief education officer M Kabir acknowledged the issue, and said that Greater Chennai Corporation is responsible for the frequent dumping and uncleared waste. “Instructions have been issued to clear the premises several times. At a recent meeting in April too, we reiterated this. We will take steps to clear the waste,” he added.Corporation assistant engineer Sanjeev, however, said it wasn’t the civic body’s fault. “Since the school gates are broken, people enter the facility at night to dump waste. We clear this regularly and have requested the public works department’s assistant engineer for cooperation to build a compound wall and set up CCTV cameras to nab the culprits,” he added.
