Hyderabad school sends students back due to water scarcity

HYDERABAD: Scarcity of water forced the Global Edge School to declare holiday on Thursday at its Kukatpally branch.
“We have been facing water crisis for the last few days, since we could not get a water tanker even on Wednesday, we had to declare a holiday on Thursday,” said an official who refused to identify herself. According to the official, an SMS alert was issued to all the parents on Thursday morning.However, a few parents who were unaware of the water issue at the campus, were asked to take their wards back.
The Global Edge School, Kukatpally has more than 2,500 students and is affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) since 2005.
The school management’s decision to shut it down due to water scarcity received flak from child rights activists in the city. “It is very unfortunate that the school management had to declare a holiday due to water shortage. The school levies heavy fee on parents and has failed to provide basic water supply for use,” said Achyutha Rao, honorary president of Balala Hakkula Sangham, adding that the school management should take up the responsibility of ensuring that there is sufficient water in the school premises.
District-level officers from the school education department admitted that schools are struggling to manage without adequate water supply. Schools in rural areas too are hit as they have been asked to fetch water from the neighbourhood to keep the toilets functional.