After complaints surface, Bihar orders districts to list schools lacking water and boundary walls
The Education Department has asked all districts to identify and submit lists of schools that still lack basics such as boundary walls and clean drinking water
- Dec 17, 2025,
- Updated Dec 17, 2025 11:54 AM IST
The Bihar government has ordered a fresh ground-level audit of school infrastructure after complaints from multiple districts cast doubt on its claims of universal facilities in government schools. The Education Department has asked all districts to identify and submit lists of schools that still lack basics such as boundary walls and clean drinking water.
The directive follows persistent reports highlighting gaps between official assurances and on-ground conditions, even as the state maintains that schools up to the higher secondary level have been opened at the panchayat level and equipped with essential amenities.
Districts asked to flag schools without basic facilities
The Bihar Education Department has instructed district administrations to prepare a detailed list of government schools that do not have boundary walls, drinking water, toilets or other basic infrastructure.
Officials said the move was prompted by complaints from several areas that questioned the government’s claims of improved school infrastructure. Despite repeated assurances that facilities have been provided across government schools, reports from the ground have continued to point to deficiencies in multiple districts.
According to officials, the immediate objective is to ensure that students are not forced to study in unsafe or unhygienic conditions due to missing infrastructure. Once the lists are submitted, the department has said corrective steps will be taken without delay in the identified schools.
Gap between policy claims and ground reality
The state government has mandated that all government schools must have clean drinking water, toilets, electricity and boundary walls. Officials acknowledge that while many schools have been covered under these provisions, several institutions still fall short.
Complaints related to the absence of boundary walls and drinking water facilities have surfaced from different parts of the state, raising concerns over student safety, sanitation and overall learning conditions. In some areas, officials noted that inadequate facilities have affected attendance and disrupted the classroom environment.
The department said this assessment is aimed at reconciling official records with actual conditions on the ground.
Fresh assessment ordered across districts
All districts have now been directed to identify government schools that lack toilets, boundary walls or drinking water facilities so that they can be prioritised for infrastructure support.
Officials said that while secondary schools have been opened at the panchayat level and many institutions have been upgraded, infrastructure development has not progressed uniformly across all regions, making this review necessary.
Government assures swift corrective action
Education Minister Sunil Kumar said the government would move quickly to address the gaps.
“Schools that lack boundary walls, clean water, and toilets will be provided with these facilities. All necessary amenities are being provided in schools, which has led to a significant increase in the number of students. Orders have been issued to promptly provide boundary walls and water facilities to schools that currently lack them,” he said.
Officials said strengthening basic infrastructure remains critical to ensuring a safe and supportive environment for students and preventing avoidable hardships in government schools.
The Bihar government has ordered a fresh ground-level audit of school infrastructure after complaints from multiple districts cast doubt on its claims of universal facilities in government schools. The Education Department has asked all districts to identify and submit lists of schools that still lack basics such as boundary walls and clean drinking water.
The directive follows persistent reports highlighting gaps between official assurances and on-ground conditions, even as the state maintains that schools up to the higher secondary level have been opened at the panchayat level and equipped with essential amenities.
Districts asked to flag schools without basic facilities
The Bihar Education Department has instructed district administrations to prepare a detailed list of government schools that do not have boundary walls, drinking water, toilets or other basic infrastructure.
Officials said the move was prompted by complaints from several areas that questioned the government’s claims of improved school infrastructure. Despite repeated assurances that facilities have been provided across government schools, reports from the ground have continued to point to deficiencies in multiple districts.
According to officials, the immediate objective is to ensure that students are not forced to study in unsafe or unhygienic conditions due to missing infrastructure. Once the lists are submitted, the department has said corrective steps will be taken without delay in the identified schools.
Gap between policy claims and ground reality
The state government has mandated that all government schools must have clean drinking water, toilets, electricity and boundary walls. Officials acknowledge that while many schools have been covered under these provisions, several institutions still fall short.
Complaints related to the absence of boundary walls and drinking water facilities have surfaced from different parts of the state, raising concerns over student safety, sanitation and overall learning conditions. In some areas, officials noted that inadequate facilities have affected attendance and disrupted the classroom environment.
The department said this assessment is aimed at reconciling official records with actual conditions on the ground.
Fresh assessment ordered across districts
All districts have now been directed to identify government schools that lack toilets, boundary walls or drinking water facilities so that they can be prioritised for infrastructure support.
Officials said that while secondary schools have been opened at the panchayat level and many institutions have been upgraded, infrastructure development has not progressed uniformly across all regions, making this review necessary.
Government assures swift corrective action
Education Minister Sunil Kumar said the government would move quickly to address the gaps.
“Schools that lack boundary walls, clean water, and toilets will be provided with these facilities. All necessary amenities are being provided in schools, which has led to a significant increase in the number of students. Orders have been issued to promptly provide boundary walls and water facilities to schools that currently lack them,” he said.
Officials said strengthening basic infrastructure remains critical to ensuring a safe and supportive environment for students and preventing avoidable hardships in government schools.