Jalgaon: ₹6.18 Crore School Repair Fund Unspent, 362 Zilla Parishad Schools Still Dilapidated

Jalgaon: Hundreds of students in rural Jalgaon continue to attend classes in unsafe and dilapidated school buildings despite funds being available for repairs. A total of 362 Zilla Parishad schools and 720 classrooms across the district require urgent restoration work, yet ₹6.18 crore allocated for repairs remained unspent and was eventually returned to the government due to administrative delays and poor planning.

The issue has raised serious concerns over the functioning of the Education Department, particularly as schools have reopened for the new academic year. Despite repeated instructions from the District Planning Committee to utilise the available funds, repair work was not undertaken, leaving students to study in deteriorating infrastructure.

Out of the funds allocated to the Zilla Parishad for the 2024–25 financial year, ₹43.72 crore remained unspent. Of this, ₹6.18 crore earmarked for school repairs was not utilised. Officials attribute the lapse to inadequate planning, lack of coordination between departments and administrative inaction.

The Zilla Parishad was also expected to implement improvements such as digital classrooms and educational facilities. However, the failure to utilise the allocated funds has stalled several initiatives aimed at enhancing the quality of education in rural areas.

With 362 schools and 720 classrooms still in need of urgent repairs, concerns are growing over student safety and learning conditions. Education experts and local representatives have pointed out that poor infrastructure remains one of the key reasons behind declining enrolment in rural schools.

The incident has once again highlighted the impact of administrative apathy on rural development, with students ultimately bearing the consequences of delayed decision-making and unutilised public funds.