No loos, no school

Lack of toilets in primary and upper primary schools under Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) has been reflecting on the enrolment and drop-out rate of girl students in Orissa’s Sambalpur district. Around 55% of schools in the district are without toilets even as construction of additional classrooms is being carried out under SSA. Schools having toilets are unusable due to lack of maintenance. In some, there is no pipe-water supply to the toilets. Under such circumstances, parents are reluctant to send their daughters to school.