KATHMANDU : Children pursuing education virtually during the ongoing pandemic are bearing the brunt of frequent power supply disruptions. Children in the north-east part of the federal capital of Kathmandu have been denied their right to education due to disruption in power supply for four days a week.
Power disruptions are becoming a regular phenomenon in the Gokarna no-light zone of the Gokarneswor and Budhanilkantha municipalities. Sachina Thapa, a fifth grader of Chandikashwori English Secondary School at Gokarneshwor-2, complained that her studies have been adversely affected due to obstructions in the power supply.
Just on Sunday, there were power disruptions in the Gokarneshwor area for 24 hours, with the power supply reported to have been disrupted for two to three hours a day since the past month.
Frequent shifting of electric poles and maintenance of electricity during daytime in the course of the road expansion projects from Jorpati to Sundarijal has caused regular power disruptions, said chief of Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA)’s Gokarna No-Light Office, Umeshman Chinya.
The Education Committee of Gokarneshwor municipality had resumed school education by adopting full safety protocols since October 2 when power disruption had become routine. The institutional schools operating in the municipality have yet to operate their classes face-to-face.
PABSON Kathmandu Chairperson Hari Krishna Shrestha said that classes have been running by maintaining social distance between students, as online classes saw a myriad of problems due to power disruption and internet connectivity.
