Over 1,100 Kerala schools declared unsafe, state faces dual test of safety and reform

Kerala’s education system is under mounting scrutiny after a government report revealed that 1,157 schools across the state are unfit to conduct classes, exposing thousands of children to potential safety risks. The findings, tabled in the Assembly by the Local Self Government Department (LSGD), underscore the deep infrastructural neglect that persists even as the state champions its education model.

Districts most at risk

General Education Minister V Sivankutty acknowledged the crisis, assuring immediate action. “While new school buildings are being constructed through plan funds and KIIFB (Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board) projects, separate allocations are also being used for maintenance,” he said in a written reply.

Kollam leads the list with 143 unsafe schools, followed by Alappuzha (134) and Thiruvananthapuram (120). Under existing rules, schools must secure annual safety certificates from local authorities — a requirement the fresh numbers show is being dangerously undermined.

Fitness vs. controversy: Zumba in schools

Amid the infrastructure crisis, another debate has gripped Kerala’s classrooms: the introduction of Zumba dance classes under an anti-drug and wellness initiative. Advocates, like instructor Roma Mansoor, argue the programme boosts physical health, mental resilience, and self-confidence.

But critics, particularly religious organisations, claim the sessions are culturally inappropriate. TK Ashraf, General Secretary of the Wisdom Islamic Organisation, refused to join with his son, while Samastha Kerala Jamiyyathul Ulama leader Nassar Faizy Koodathai branded the move “a violation of students’ rights.”

Government defends initiative

The state has defended the programme as both voluntary and vital to student well-being. Minister Sivankutty argued that opposing Zumba could spread “poison more deadly than drugs” and CPI(M) leader MA Baby dismissed the criticism as “absolutely untrue.”

As Kerala pushes for urgent safety upgrades in over a thousand schools while also piloting wellness reforms, the state stands at a crossroads — torn between the imperative to protect students’ physical safety and the need to nurture their emotional and cultural well-being.