Disturbing visuals have surfaced from Banav village, situated in the Kard panchayat of the Sumb block within the hilly terrain of Samba district, Jammu and Kashmir. The images depict a father firmly holding his young child's hand while carefully wading through a perilous, fast-flowing river, solely because the child is waiting to reach the school on the other side.
A Hazardous Journey to Access Classrooms
At an age when children ought to hold books in their hands and focus on their education, they are compelled to navigate life-threatening water currents first. On this treacherous path, a minor slip of the foot or a momentary loss of balance could turn into a severe accident in an instant. Students and parents in the village live under the constant shadow of fear as they negotiate the dangerous river every single day just to attend school.
Painfully Slow Progress on Bridge Construction
Local residents pointed out that construction work on a bridge at this site has been initiated, but the pace of work remains extremely slow. Until the bridge is fully constructed and opened for use, schoolchildren and other villagers are forced to rely on this hazardous crossing, where every single step presents a grave safety risk.
Repeated Demands for Urgent Administrative Action
This plight is far from new. Villagers have repeatedly highlighted this dangerous situation before the administration on previous occasions, but the ground reality remains unchanged. The local community has once again appealed to the authorities to accelerate the bridge construction work and complete the project at the earliest. Reaching a classroom should never put a child's life at risk, and children should not have to fight a battle against a dangerous river simply to gain access to books and learning.
