Drinking water facility to 290 schools by month-end

Rajahmundry: East Godavri District Collector Neetu Prasad said on Friday that the administration was determined to complete the creation of drinking water facility by the end of this month to all 290 schools identified in the last academic year. Speaking to the media at Sub-Collector's office here, she said that the Education Department had been asked to submit a report in accordance with Supreme Court direction of providing drinking water and toilets to all schools. Based on the report, the administration has completed 93 drinking water schemes in schools and remaining are in the finishing stage. She also said that there is a need for 212 toilets in various schools in the district out of which 80 per cent were completed and the remaining will be completed by the month end. She said that the government has sanctioned Rs 15,000 for repairing toilets in schools. Ms. Neetu Prasad said that the government released Rs 2 crore for all social welfare hostels in the district and Indian Oil Corporation and ONGC have extended Rs 50 lakh each to spend on repairs, purchase of computers, beds, inverters and other infrastructure facilities. She said that all these works will be completed within a week as the process has already started from this January. When the conditions in the hostels and schools about basic amenities were brought to her notice, the Collector said that she received complaints about Jaggampeta Gurukul Ashram by the Minister and Rs.6 lakhs were given to the Ashram school. She said that she is ready to release funds for drinking water and toilets, as the two are top priority. The Collector said that Chief Minister is expected to visit on April 21 and she sent a request to include inauguration of Tribal Welfare Hostel in Arts College and Integrated Hostel at Dowlaiswaram in his one-day tour.