Swollen river below, unfinished bridge above: Kids brave raging water to reach school
Children in Chhattisgarh's Gariyaband district are forced to navigate a dangerous, unfinished bridge and a swollen river to reach school during the monsoon season. Despite repeated complaints and official promises, construction on the bridge has remained stalled for six years.
Why it matters
It highlights critical infrastructure failures in rural India that directly endanger the lives of students and impede access to education.
RAIPUR: School bag on back. Feet on a slippery iron ladder. A swollen river 20 feet below. For children in Mainpur block of Chhattisgarh's Gariyaband district, about 190km southeast of Raipur, this is a daily commute to school when monsoon turns the normally shallow Pairi river into a torrent.Dozens of children from Khambhatha and nearby settlements climb a narrow ladder fixed to a pillar of an unfinished bridge, edge past exposed steel bars, and cross above the fast-flowing water to reach primary, middle and high schools. A commute with no room for a misstep. Pairi is a seasonal, rain-fed river rising in Bhatigarh hills of Gariyaband.6 years on, incomplete bridge turns monsoon river crossing into daily gamble for childrenIn winter, it dwindles to a trickle.
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