Community school students from the Galakot region of Baglung are increasingly going abroad for further studies. As the young population migrates abroad, the rural areas have been left deserted. The fertile lands have been abandoned due to the exodus of villagers, and the schools are also facing a decline in enrollment.
After the integration and arrangement of schools by the Galakot Municipality, young students now have to travel long distances to attend nearby schools. The local girls and boys who used to go to school in their vicinity now face difficulties in reaching the schools.
However, with the provision of transportation facilities by the municipality, students have become enthusiastic about attending school again. They now have vehicles available to pick them up from their homes making their journey to school more convenient and enjoyable. The students who used to take hours to reach school now arrive in a short time.
The municipality efforts to provide transportation facilities have been particularly beneficial for students like Nikita Thapa who used to face various challenges while studying in grade 12. She used to spend a lot of time traveling and the school journey became even more challenging during the rainy season.
Vishnu Thapa a local expressed his appreciation for the municipality’s efforts in providing transportation facilities. He operates a pickup jeep for students’ transportation and finds it easier to pick them up in the morning and drop them off in the evening after finishing his work.
The municipality has initiated the integration and arrangement of five primary schools and ten secondary schools this year. The integration has been done based on the geographical location and the increase in migration to urban areas and foreign countries. The spokesperson of Galakot Municipality, Hem Bahadur Bhandari, mentioned that the municipality has allocated NPR 10 lakhs for transportation facilities this fiscal year.
He further stated that from this year onwards, students from the remote areas of Galakot are provided with transportation services, and the municipality plans to enhance the effectiveness of the program in the coming years.
The spokesperson also mentioned that this year onwards, half-yearly exams for grades 8 and 10 will be conducted by the municipality, along with the appointment of substitute teachers during the maternity leave of teachers.
Overall the efforts made by the Galakot Municipality such as the provision of transportation facilities have positively impacted students interest in attending school.
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