Bhawanipatna DIET gasping for help

The New Indian Express (Bhubaneswar), March 15, 2013

By Uma Sahankar Kar | ENS - BHAWANIPATNA

15th March 2013 11:30 AM

Nothing seems right with the District Institute of Education and Training (DIET) at Bhawanipatna. While the institute lacks heavily in infrastructure, teaching has taken a major beating due to poor teachers’ strength.

The Secondary Training School of Bhawanipatna was set up in 1962 and upgraded to DIET in 1988 with 50 seats. Last year, the DIET started providing two-year diploma course in elementary education.

However, of 50 seats, only 35 have been filled up. Though classes were started in November last year, no second selection has been held for the remaining 15 seats till now. Even as the first year examination of the diploma course will be held this month, text books were provided to the students only two weeks back. School authorities informed that in the absence of new syllabus and text books, the students are being taught as per the old syllabus.

To add to the problems, most of the teaching and non-teaching posts in the institute are lying vacant for a long time. Of 20 teaching posts, 15 are vacant. Worse, the existing five teachers have not been paid their salaries for the last one year. Overburdened, these teachers take classes even during summer and Dussehra vacations to finish the course on time.

Principal of the institute Naba Kishore Giri said acute shortage of teachers has hampered education in the DIET. “Hardly any of the existing teachers has taken leave in the last one year,” he said. Apart from teaching staff, posts of office superintendent, technical assistant, PET, librarian, statistical assistant, accountant-cum-steno and junior clerk are lying vacant. Out of six Class IV posts, three are vacant.

“In the absence of staff, co-curricular activities like annual function and sports are not held,” said Murtunjaya Patel, a second year diploma student.

Though the DIET has just one boys’ hostel, it lies in a  dilapidated condition and is in urgent need of repair. While the building has developed cracks at various places, the roof leaks whenever it rains. Out of five lavatories, five are broken. There are no drinking water and mess facilities in the hostel.