Colva: Students of Govt Primary School, Colva, have been attending classes under the open sky for weeks, braving early-morning dew and the harsh sun after the public works department (PWD) dismantled the school’s roof in Jan and has failed to refit it so far.The two-room primary school near Dando ground, which caters to 14 students from Classes I to IV, and 15 more children awaiting admission in the coming academic year, has been functioning without a roof since the Christmas vacation ended and classes resumed. The building also doubles up as a polling booth during elections.With no shelter overhead, lessons are being conducted in classrooms fully exposed to the elements, raising serious concerns about the safety and well-being of the students.Headmistress Rupali Dessai said she has made repeated calls to the PWD and the contractor appointed to replace the roof, only to be told that the required material had not yet arrived from a factory outside the state.PWD executive engineer Vincent D’souza stated that he has been recently transferred to division VIII, which oversees govt buildings, and therefore does not have complete details of the pending work.However, he said that the contract was awarded to a Pune-based firm to replace tiled roofs with sheets at two government primary schools — Colva and Cavelossim. The Pune contractor, in turn, subcontracted the work.Following the removal of the original tiled roof, fabrication work was carried out to install the sheets. Alarmingly, holes were drilled into the classroom walls and metal members were welded while students were present inside the classrooms.After the issue was taken up by Colva-Sernabatim panch member Pio Furtado, sheets were finally delivered to the site on Feb 6. Two labourers were later seen applying anti-rust coating to the metal framework. However, the workers were reportedly not using safety harnesses or protective equipment, further endangering the lives of students and teachers.Asked why classes were not suspended until the roofing work was completed, Dessai said holidays could not be declared, though school hours have been curtailed, with classes now held from 7.45am to noon.D’souza promised that efforts would be made to complete the work within a fortnight.A similar situation prevails at the Govt Primary School, Cavelossim, where the entire roof has been removed and fabrication work completed. Sheets are already piled at the site, appearing to have been stored there for some time. The key difference, however, is that the school currently has no students and is used solely as a polling booth.Cavelossim sarpanch Dixon Vaz said a proposal has been submitted to the government to utilise the premises for self-help groups from the village.
