Nagpur: It took three innocent lives for the tribal development department (TDD) to order a full-blown review of ashramshalas in Maharashtra and even start hammering out new SOPs for residential schools on priority. The three schoolgirls could have been happily playing with their hostel mates today in Dhanora taluka if only they had a bed to sleep at night to avoid the venomous fangs of the snake. The raised bed platform could have been the deciding factor between life and death hours after Monday midnight.TDD ashramshala guidelines state that beds must be provided to hostel inmates, but here the girls slept on the floor. Jaiswal said, “Also a huge stock of firewood in the adjoining room was kept stacked with construction material, and it is from a window next to it that the snake slithered in. Missing beds were not the sole violation, the window did not have a wire mesh, which meant any reptile could easily creep in. Mattresses too had got wet and could not be used.” While parents mourn their kids, many are praying for the two surviving kids who are battling for life.On Tuesday, tribal development minister Ashok Uike said all top officials are connecting over video conferencing to revamp the system. “Additional tribal commissioners (ATCs) met and new SOPs will be declared by Aug 14,” said Uike.In Nagpur, ATC Ayushi Singh told reporters that a preliminary report will be submitted on Tuesday night, but the inquiry report will be ready only after autopsy reports come in. In Nagpur division, there are 200 ashramshalas, with an overwhelming majority of them being under the aided category. The private trusts which run these ‘ashramshalas’ get funds from govt based on number of students admitted.Now, the Gadchiroli tragedy has forced a statewide review of all ashramshalas, which means a crackdown on those violating rules is now imminent due to strict monitoring of site inspections. The new SOPs are likely to include GPS tagging or photographic evidence of infrastructure in all schools.While it is expected that these new SOPs and heightened media scrutiny will improve living conditions at ashramshalas, it will all be because three young girls did not get a bed to sleep.
