GAIBANDHA, Dec 1: Hundreds of char children are dropping out of education every year in the district due to natural calamities like flood, river erosion, cold wave and drought caused by climate change.
Education office sources said, there are 165 chars in the Brahmaputra River basins in four upazilas- Sundarganj, Sadar, Fulchhari and Saghata in the district where over four lakh people live by struggling with these natural disasters.
Every academic year, a large number of children of the chars are admitted to nearby primary schools. The char children have also dream to be doctors, engineers and higher-educated persons. But their dreams are not materialised.
Habibur Rahman, head teacher of a primary school at char in Fulchhari Upazila said, a number of students collected from the catchment areas got admitted to the school. But they cannot continue their studies due to disastrous situation, and day by day many of these students are dropped out.
Sometimes, the school is shifted to another place due to erosion by river. That is why, most of the students cannot adapt to the changing situation.
Those who continue their studies in school till grade five have to face such disasters, he added.
Hafija Begum, head teacher of another char school said, those who have a strong desire to learn, can only receive education even in the midst of adversity.
Saiduzzaman Sarker, chairman of Mollarchar Union in Sadar Upazila, said, the people of the union are to lead their livelihood through challenging the disastrous situation all the year round.
In this situation, going to schools and to returning from there is very tough for a char child, he added.
District Primary Education Officer Harun-ur-Rashid said, a total of 116 government primary schools have been running in the chars for ensuring primary education among the char children.
Necessary measures have been taken to establish movable schools in the chars so that the infrastructure of the schools can be shifted to a convenient location easily, considering the interest of the char children, he maintained.
