After Class 3 girl’s plea to PM Modi goes viral, J&K govt starts work on school

Merely a week after a Class 3 student’s open plea to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a video message to ensure better facilities at her dilapidated school building in Kathua district, the Jammu and Kashmir administration has swung into action to provide more amenities at the premises.

Seerat Naaz’s video appeal to the prime minister last week, which went viral on social media, jolted the state officials into action and Director of School Education, Jammu, Ravi Shankar Sharma visited  the government school in the remote Lohai-Malhar block.

“Assalamu Alaikum Modiji. Kaise ho aap…aap sab ki baat suntey ho, meri bhi baat suno (Hello, Modiji. How are you? You listen to everyone, please listen to me also),” Naaz said in her four-minute video that went viral.

Naaz said students are forced to sit on the dirty floors, which often stain their uniforms. She also highlighted the bad condition of the toilets, and the unfinished construction work of the building.

“You listen to the entire nation, please listen to me as well and build a nice school for us so that we can continue our education and not get scolded by our mothers for getting our uniforms dirty,” the girl said in her passionate appeal to the prime minister.

Taking note of the video clip, the Jammu and Kashmir administration immediately swung into action to give the school a facelift.

“A project worth Rs 91 lakh was sanctioned to upgrade the school on modern lines but the work was held up due to some issue related to administrative approval. It has now been sorted out and the work is underway,” Sharma said after visiting the school.

The official said hundreds of schools are running in the remote areas of the Union Territory and the government has already prepared a detailed project to ensure proper facilities at all of them.