No school should be without toilets

It is hard to believe that students of Latachapli Government Primary School in Kuakata, Patuakhali are attending classes in a four-storey building which does not have a single toilet. For the 419 students of the school, the only option is an old, dilapidated building nearby, where three toilets are unusable and the remaining ones are reportedly so filthy and foul-smelling that the children tend to avoid them. As a result, those who need to use a toilet during school hours often have to go home to do so, missing one or two classes. This is unacceptable for any school, especially a government-run institution.

By neglecting the provision of this basic facility, authorities are exposing students and teachers to serious health risks. According to child health specialists, retaining urine for long periods can increase the risk of urinary infections, while unhygienic toilets can expose children to various infections and diseases. Younger children may also experience embarrassment and psychological distress when they cannot access a usable toilet. Moreover, there is no separate toilet for female teachers, despite eight of the school’s 10 staff members being women. Female teachers reportedly drink small sips of water during the nearly six-hour school day to avoid needing to use the toilet, which can also put their health at risk.

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Unfortunately, this newspaper has previously reported on other schools facing similar problems. What is particularly absurd in this case is that the school building was constructed without any washroom facilities. While the Local Government Engineering Department supervised the construction and approved the design, the responsibility for building wash blocks lies with the Department of Public Health Engineering, which has failed to do its job. The question is: how was the school building approved for use in such a design? This is a clear example of poor planning in a country where many development projects are carried out without proper assessment, often leaving them ineffective.

We urge authorities to provide adequate and functional toilets at Latachapli Government Primary School and other schools facing similar problems to achieve a proper learning environment. The government must also ensure that all new school buildings include adequate toilet facilities from the design stage, while existing schools should be regularly inspected for any sanitation problems and provided with proper facilities where necessary.