Patna: In the wake of coronavirus pandemic, state governments across the nation have been urging institutions to make e-education mandatory, however, for the rural areas of Bihar online learning still remains a distant dream.
With the literacy rate around 51 per cent, Purnia district of Bihar is facing one of the tough challenges in the education sector.
While the students in the urban area have access to online classes, pupils across rural districts don't even get electricity throughout the day. Moreover, the problem of poor internet connectivity is yet another issue that needs to be resolved at the earliest.
Villagers complain, "In some places one can't even make a call without any disruption, in that case, browsing a website or attending zoom classes become almost impossible. Bihar government has been bragging its educational growth, however, the reality is different."
According to the reports, 30 per cent of children in Purnia don't even go to school, with online education in focus, the growth in literacy rate is at stake, given the educational challenges the state has.
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"It has become a problem for us to give our children access to online education. We aren't strong financially, there are people who do not even have a smartphone. Internet is yet another thing which needs investment how can you expect us to educate our children in this present situation," a guardian said.
Requesting authorities to help his children, a daily wage earner Rahul added, "The coronavirus situation is very challenging but the government needs to think about the poor people as well. We are falling short of any help."
The ground reality continues to be far different from the government's official reports.
"There are many people who don't have phones. I borrow a phone from a shopkeeper and then help students attend an online class. There are many such students who are not strong financially, their parents feel helpless when it comes to e-education," a teacher, Putul Kumari elaborated.
A shopkeeper in the village remarked that guardians are very much worried about their wards, some of them come to repairing-shops and ask for second-hand cellphones which are comparatively cheaper.
"To speak the truth, many parents are going out of their ways to make educational ends meet," he added.
