Students of Bokaro Steel Kalyan Vidyalaya outside their classes in Bokaro on Monday. Picture by Pankaj Singh

Class V student Meena Yadav is bored sick of school. Though her mother tells her everyday not to leave studies and that illiteracy is a big curse, Meena counters with “what’s the use?” Since the past few months, she doesn’t have any textbooks and is tired of gossiping with friends

Class VII student Mohammad Idris loves going to school. He can now chat with friends in class all day long. Even teachers don’t object as they do the same — chatting with colleagues.

Bokaro, July 11: It’s playtime across all seven periods for 450 students of Bokaro Steel Limited’s dream CSR project —Bokaro Steel Kalyan Vidyalaya — since April, the start of this year’s academic session. The education project for needy kids that started in 2007 with a lot of fanfare, is showing signs of callous neglect.

Since April, no books or stationery that students are supposed to get free of cost from the public sector steel giant, have arrived. While around 450 students — from Classes I to IX — sit and chat in class or roam on campus, 22 school staff, including 11 teachers, are sitting idle in staff rooms.

The Telegraph team was invited to see the problem first hand by some senior students. “Why don’t you come to see what’s happening in the city rather than only talking about state and national politics?” one said.

Teachers are frustrated too. “This is the first time something like this has happened. It’ll take around a fortnight more to get books,” said one.

“How long can we pull on like this? Children are clamouring for books. And it is very difficult to keep them engaged,” another said, adding the half-yearly exam had to be postponed by two months.

Bokaro steel plant needs to spend Rs 3-5 lakh a year on the cradle’s upkeep, a paltry sum compared to the two per cent of its annual profit that it is supposed to spend on corporate social responsibility. In 2010-11, it showed Rs 1,250 crore as profit after tax. But money isn’t in short supply, sincerity is.

Bokaro steel communications chief Sanjay Tewary, when contacted, said: “The delay in enterprises resource planning of projects caused this glitch.” In layman terms, the “glitch” is nothing but the fact that the supply order for books and stationery was not placed by the PSU’s education department on time.

“I have been assured by the top bosses of the department that books will come in a week,” Tewary added.