In absence of bridge, these Assam kids swim daily to reach school

Swimming across the river to reach the school has become a routine affair for the children of Dalgaon district of Assam.

In the absence of a bridge, the students of the Kachomari Primary School either swim or use the banana stem as a raft to cross the river. In few cases where children are too young, parents carry them on their shoulders and cross the water body.

Not only this, the school premises remains flooded due to lack of proper drainage system.

Narrating the ordeal of the students, Sarwan Kumar Jha, a social worker from the region said, "There is about 1 to 1.5 feet of rain-water accumulated in the school itself. To come to school, students have to cross a 40-45 feet wide river as there is no bridge here. Students either swim across the river or are carried on shoulder by their parents. Some students also use the parts of the Banana tree to create a makeshift boat structure to cross the river for coming to school."

Jha further claimed that the situation is such from past four months. The principal has already informed the district administration about the issue but no action has been taken in this regard.

"Parents of the students are now worried. The depth of water is currently less in the river but it might increase much more during the rain. We demand that considering the future of these students, the Government must immediately ensure construction of the footbridge in the river", Jha added.

(PTI)