NHRC issues notice to Gujarat over reports of children swimming to school

New Delhi: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Wednesday issued a notice to Gujarat Government over a media report about children swimming across a river to reach school.

A notice in this connection has been issued to the Chief Secretary of Government of Gujarat calling for a report within four weeks, according to an official statement released on Wednesday.

The notice was issued after the Commission took suo motu cognisance of a media report that in absence of a bridge, about 125 students of five villages in Chhota Udepur district of Gujarat have to swim across the Hiran River to go to their government school in Utavadi Village in Tilakwada Taluka of District Narmada. They then have to walk up to five kilometres into the Narmada district to reach their high school.

"The villagers have been requesting for construction of a bridge over the river for a very long time but in vain. The report carries a photograph of the children swimming across the river," the statement said.

The Commission has observed that the content of the press report, if true, raise serious issues of violation of right to life of the children who swim across the river and the right to education of those who are not able to go to school due to this problem.