Maha Sabha promises parents school structure in 8 days

THE SANATAN Dharma Maha Sabha (SDMS) has promised parents and pupils of Penal Rock Road Hindu School that within eight days a temporary structure will be erected so that classes would continue. SDMS president Thir-bhawan Seegobin said a near 24-hour work effort is to be implemented for the construction of a steel structure that will accommodate teachers, students, and administrative staff. “There will be a virtual round the clock effort to help rebuild the school. We (the Maha Sabha) have not done the costing as yet, but we know what we have to do. Right now the priority is to get the school back on track,” Seegobin said.

Yesterday around midday, Seegobin and Maha Sabha Secretary General Sat Maharaj, Parliamen-tary Representative Kamla Persad-Bissessar, and local government councillor Diptee Ram-nath, met with parents, who were worried that their children had been displaced just three days before the school term was due to begin. On Friday around 2.30 pm fire completely gutted the school, which had been built in 1967. The school, which accommodated 138 pu-pils, had been preparing for the opening of the school term. Initial investigations by fire officials said a heap of rubbish burning a few feet from the back of the school may have ignited the blaze.

Seegobin and Maharaj informed parents of the temporary arrangements to be implemented, having received the support of local government, Ministry of Education, and Penal/Debe Corpora-tion. One pupil, Saisnarine Moonesar, who will be entering Standard Five and preparing to sit the Secondary Entrance As-sessment (SEA) next year told Sunday Newsday, “I was eager to come out to school on Monday. But then the fire took place and I didn’t know what was going to happen.” Saisnarine’s mother, Dhanrajee, who is a past-pupil of the 50-year-old school, added that as soon as they learnt of the fire, she telephoned his teacher and became concerned that her son would be missing classes. “I was worried that the children would be missing out on their work. But now I feel better that something will be done.” In the meantime, Dhan-rajee said her son will continue his school work at home. Maharaj said the primary school would borrow furniture and other fixtures from other SDMS schools. He added the SDMS dismissed the idea of using a pre-fabricated structure and decided to erect a steel structure.