This BBMP school may collapse anytime

With toilets unfit for use, children have to pee in the open

Y. Maheswara Reddy | NT

Bengaluru, Dec. 14 Do you know the life span of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) buildings? If your guess is 20 or 30 years, then you are wide off the mark.

This particular BBMP building has barely completed three years, and is on the verge of a collapse - thanks to substandard construction and poor maintenance.

If you want to know, visit the BMBP Nursery School building at Murphy Town near Halasuru in CV Raman Nagar Assembly constituency. The school building was constructed in August, 2019 and inaugurated by the then Mayor Gangambike Mallikarjun. Now, the building has developed numerous cracks, thereby indicating that it may collapse any time.

There are around 30 children at the Nursery School and majority of them hail from economically weaker sections of the society. Though there is no shortage of study material for these children, they are deprived of a vital facility - access to washrooms. The BBMP has constructed toilets, but they are unfit to use.

“I have already complained to the former corporator and BBMP authorities about the poor condition of the toilets. I have no alternative rather than allowing the kids to use the open space to attend nature’s call. If children are suffering from diarrhoea, I have to inform their parents over the phone,’’ said a teacher on condition of anonymity.

The teacher said water seepage from the roof happens whenever it rains heavily. “No maintenance has been done for the last three years. I want the authorities concerned to maintain this building properly to avoid inconvenience to the children,” she said.

A portion of the school building shelters BangaloreOne Centre, patronised by nearby residents to pay utility bills. The beam of the building has developed huge cracks, thereby putting the lives of employees and visitors at risk.

“I am worried about my safety. The cracks indicate that the beam is weakened. I want the authorities to take measures either to fix the problem or shift this facility to another place,’’ said an employee of Bangalore One Centre.

When informed, BBMP Senior Education Officer Hanumanthaiah has said that he would visit the school on Wednesday and take measures to fix the problem.

Meanwhile, BBMP Special Commissioner (Education) B Reddy Shankar Babu has said that he has already directed a BBMP education officer and an executive engineer to visit the school. “I will ensure the problem is fixed without any delay. I have also directed the education officer and executive engineer to take up maintenance of schools that crave for immediate attention, without any delay,’’ he said.