Children forced to study under tin roofs despite extreme heat

By Siraj Khan, Nepalgunj, June 7: In Banke, one of the hottest districts in the country, students in many community schools are being forced to study under tin-roofed classrooms even during extreme summer heat.

Teachers say that most community schools still rely on tin-roof structures, making classrooms unbearably hot during high temperatures, with students struggling in suffocating conditions and sweating heavily while trying to study.

At Shree Secondary School, Shahpurwa in Ward No. 4 of Duduwa Rural Municipality, assistant principal Tika Khadka said that classrooms become extremely hot during the peak summer season, making teaching and learning very difficult.

He added that frequent power cuts, lack of fans, and intense heat are affecting both students’ health and their ability to study, especially among younger children.

Similarly, teacher Hira Gautam of Adarsha Secondary School in Ward No. 20 of Nepalgunj Sub-Metropolitan City, Ranjha, said students often suffer from headaches, fatigue, and repeatedly leave classrooms to drink water due to the extreme heat under tin roofs. She stressed the need to make schools at least in hot regions free from tin roofing.

Likewise, teacher Alka Baranwal of Sharada Basic School in Ward No. 10 of Nepalgunj, said most schools still have primary-level children studying under tin-roofed classrooms, causing serious difficulties for students.

To reduce heat, some schools have installed gypsum ceilings under tin roofs with support from local governments. 

However, teacher Dharma Raj Joshi of Sharada Basic School said this measure has proven ineffective in Nepalgunj’s extreme heat.

Head of the Education and Sports Section of Nepalgunj Sub-Metropolitan City, Gorkha Bahadur Thapa, said efforts have been made to reduce heat in some tin-roofed schools by installing gypsum ceilings. 

He added that new school buildings are no longer constructed with tin roofs and the municipality plans to gradually make all schools free from tin roof.

Krishna Prasad Shrestha, coordinator of the Citizens’ Concern Forum Banke, said it is unfortunate that while government buildings at local levels are becoming well-equipped and air-conditioned, children from poor families are still forced to study in extreme heat under tin roofs.

He also demanded that all schools in Banke, one of the hottest districts, be made tin-roof free as soon as possible.