As many as 17,403 government schools, 92.29 per cent of the total, have separate toilet facilities for girl students in Jammu and Kashmir, while 1,321 schools, accounting for 7.71 per cent, are still without such facilities, it was revealed on Wednesday during a high-level review chaired by Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo on the availability and functionality of girls’ toilets across the Union Territory.
The review meeting, attended by the Additional Chief Secretary, Public Works Department (PWD), Secretary, School Education Department, Directors of School Education, Chief Engineers and other senior officers, focused on assessing sanitation infrastructure created under various schemes and its current operational status. Emphasising that access to clean and functional toilets is critical for attendance, retention and dignity of girl students, the Chief Secretary said that infrastructure creation alone was insufficient unless facilities were fully functional on the ground.
During the review, Dulloo took a detailed assessment of the number of toilets constructed, those under execution and their present condition. He stressed the need to ensure assured water supply, proper maintenance and allied utilitiesSetting a firm deadline, the Chief Secretary instructed that all ongoing works related to construction and upgradation of girls’ toilets be completed by February 15. He further directed the School Education Department to ensure that toilets already constructed are made operational in all respects well before the stipulated date.
To strengthen monitoring at the grassroots level, Dulloo ordered the constitution of zone-level committees comprising officers from the School Education Department and the Roads and Buildings (R and B) Department. These committees will carry out joint inspections of schools, identify gaps, assess repair and improvement needs, and oversee execution of works required to make the facilities fully functional.
The Chief Secretary underscored that access to clean and functional sanitation facilities is essential for creating a safe, inclusive and girl-friendly learning environment. He called for close inter-departmental coordination and continuous monitoring to ensure timely completion of works and sustained maintenance of facilities.
During the meeting, Additional Chief Secretary, PWD, Anil Kumar Singh said the department was committed to completing all assigned works within the prescribed timelines. He added that in areas where conventional construction may not be feasible within the deadline, prefabricated toilet structures would be installed to ensure availability of facilities well before the cut-off date.
Secretary, School Education Department, Ram Niwas Sharma, informed the meeting that out of 18,724 government schools across JK, 18,023 schools—99.25 per cent—have toilet facilities of some kind. He said construction of 265 girls’ toilets is currently under execution, while the remaining 1,056 schools without separate facilities are being taken up in a time-bound manner.
According to officials, the works will be completed before the start of the academic session in winter-zone areas and by 15 February in summer-zone schools across the Union Territory.
