In a rare form of protest, many students from Pul Patiya-Bharatnagar village in Bhuj taluka of Kutch have withdrawn from the sub-section of Ambedkarnagar Prathmik Shala over the past four working days. Their parents began collecting school leaving certificates en masse after their persistent demand—spanning over six years—for a full-fledged school in the village was repeatedly dismissed by the people who matter.
According to a report by a national daily, the protest was triggered after the state Education Department, in a communication dated July 23 to the District Primary Education Officer (DPEO), advised that the village should continue with the existing sub-section system. This response came despite years of appeals from the villagers for an independent school. The memorandum submitted to Kutch Collector Anand Patel on Monday reiterated their concerns, including the lack of teachers in the sub-section.
The sub-section, known locally as peta varg, is operated by the Education Department from a tin-shed community hall in the village. It is manned by only two teachers and has no infrastructure. The main school is situated around two kilometres away in another village and is inaccessible for many children. The peta varg currently accommodates 134 students, more than double the strength of the main school, which has 72 students, eight rooms, and six teachers, the report mentioned.
The villagers presented a memorandum demanding an independent school, Collector Anand Patel told the media outlet. Certain teaching positions in the sub-section were yet to be filled, Patel specified.
Although the matter was in the realm of the zilla panchayat’s jurisdiction, he had communicated the villagers’ concerns to the District Primary Education Officer.
He also informed that the recruitment of teachers was in progress.
The withdrawal process reportedly began on July 25, with 34 LCs signed by the school principal before Education Department officials intervened on July 26. The protest continued into the following week, with the number of students leaving reaching 72 by Tuesday. Principal Minaxi Chauhan confirmed that 72 LCs had been issued over four days—18 on July 25, 14 on July 26, 11 on July 28, and 27 on July 29. She noted that several more parents had indicated plans to collect LCs the following day as well.
According to the report, parents requested that the reason for leaving be formally mentioned on the certificates. Accordingly, each LC cited the reason as “Swatantra shala na madta, shala bahishkaar,” translating to the refusal of an independent school and a consequent school boycott.
A local community leader said the demand for a proper school had been ongoing for several years. The villagers had even approached the Education Department in Gandhinagar three times, but their requests were denied. The community leader added that although the peta varg had been operational for six years, the government had failed to provide the promised school. While the main school lies more than two kilometres away, most students in the village attend the peta varg where all eight classes—from 1 to 8—are taught together in a single hall by only two teachers, without class divisions or basic facilities.
The leader recalled that the village had initially raised the demand for a school in 2019, following an accident in which a student was maimed while crossing the Bhuj-Khavda highway to attend school in a nearby vaadi (farmland) area. At the time, the community was assured that a full-fledged school would be established within six months.
Additionally, the leader pointed out that despite repeated follow-ups in 2023, 2024, and 2025, and submission of recommendation letters from Kutch MP Vinod Chavda and Anjar MLA Trikam B Chhanga, the situation remained unchanged. He added that the most recent response from the state Education Department, dated July 23, 2025, reiterated that the peta varg would continue from the current premises.
The decision to protest was made collectively by the parents after discussions within the community. There are approximately 700 families in the Pul Patiya-Bharatnagar village, which falls under the Jikadi juth (group) panchayat. Located around 10 km from Bhuj on National Highway 341 towards Khavda, the village has a significant minority population.
Here’s the plight of a Class 4 student whose parent explained that many families felt compelled to keep their children in the unsafe and inadequate community hall. It was still better than risking their lives by crossing the highway to attend the main school. The parent referred to recent accidents involving salt-laden trucks, including one that had left his sister in a coma years ago, and asked whether the expectation for a proper school was unreasonable.
Taluka Primary Education Officer (TPEO) Nilesh Gor, who reportedly visited the village on July 26 to dissuade parents from withdrawing their children, told the daily that the villagers’ demand for a school required approval from the Directorate of Primary Education, which had already rejected the proposal.
Asked why a separate school had not been approved despite higher student numbers, lack of infrastructure, and staff shortages, he said that no building in the village could be deemed suitable for a school. He added that parents had been requested to hold off on collecting LCs while efforts were made to resolve the matter.
TPEO Gor mentioned that land had now been identified for constructing a school in Pul Patiya-Bharatnagar and that the Sarpanch of the Jikadi Juth gram panchayat had officially notified it for educational use. The process to construct the school at the district level was now set to begin.
Valji Ahir, Sarpanch of the Bharatnagar-Jikadi group gram panchayat, confirmed that a resolution had already been passed to hand over the land. He said it was now the Education Department’s responsibility to build the school.
But when families begin to distance themselves from schools because their voices go unheard, it unsettles the very foundation on which a nation builds its future. In Bhuj, the families of Pul Patiya-Bharatnagar now wait—yet again—for a promise to materialise. As the paperwork moves forward, they stand at the edge of a hope that has been stretched too thin, their patience tested beyond measure.
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