Primary education, free and compulsory for all, has remained elusive for thousands of poor children as there are no primary schools in 45 villages of Magura district.
Despite parents being eager to educate their children, they cannot do so because there are no primary schools nearby.
As per the rules, a village must have 2000 people to have a government primary school established there. Unfortunately, at least 15 villages do not have any primary school despite having fulfilled such a requirement.
The villages that fulfill the requirement are Manachar, Kaura, Patharghata, Meshdi, Mirjapur, Arua, Varatpur, Udash, Kharibaria, Shoanvanga, Gopalgram, Boira, Piprul and Bagura.
Ali Kadar, who lives at Mohammadpur upazilla’s Kaura, said: “I have a 10-year-old son. I have stopped his education for three years because there is no primary school nearby.
“Earlier, I had sent him to his maternal uncle’s house at Binodpur village to start his education. He studied there till Class III. After his uncle moved to Dhaka along with his family, I had to bring my son back home.”
Ashak Pal, who lives at Shalikha upazila’s Varatpur village, said: “I have failed to give my 9-year-old even primary education because there is school near our home.” “The primary school which is closest to my home is around four kilometres away,” he said.
Abdul Motaleb, a retired primary school teacher who lives at Sadar upazila’s Abalpur village, said: “Villagers used to set up registered primary schools on their own in the past in places where there was a lack of schools.
“Youths would also come forward to teach at such schools, but now there is no scope for setting up such schools because the government has stated that it will nationalise all such schools in the country.
“As per the rules, only the government can now set up primary schools.”
Seeking anonymity, a primary school headmaster said: “This government is committed to building Bangladesh as an illiteracy-free country by 2014.
“I do not understand how the government can achieve that goal when there is no primary school at so many villages in the district.”
When District Primary Education Officer Md Shirajudhoha was asked about this, he said: “We have sent a proposal to the higher authorities to set up primary schools at 15 villages, but no response has come as yet.”