Hailstorm blows off Morley HS School roof in Salganga, classes suspended

The Tuesday night (April 21) storm in Cachar caused major damage to a higher secondary school in the Udharbond area. The roof of Morley Higher Secondary School in Salganga was blown off by the hailstorm, while several classrooms were damaged, forcing the authorities to suspend classes indefinitely. Established in 1952, the school is a provincialised institution under the Assam Government and the only higher secondary school in the area, with over one thousand students enrolled.

The permanent school building was demolished last year to be reconstructed under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) scheme. Since then, students have been attending classes in a temporary bamboo-and-tin shed with 12 classrooms built on the school playground. The storm, which reportedly began around 8 PM, severely damaged the temporary structure, leaving all classrooms unusable.

School principal Bimal Biswas said, “The school was destroyed by a hail storm that started from around 8 PM last night. Because of the ongoing construction of our permanent school building, we were housed in a temporary long shed where there were 12 classrooms, all of which had been damaged by the storm,” he said.

Biswas added that school materials were also damaged, leaving the institution unable to conduct classes. “We are unable to take our classes. Unless the classrooms are fixed, we cannot resume classes,” he said.

He further said the original school building was demolished about a year ago for redevelopment under the RIDF 2023–24 scheme, and a new building is currently being constructed. “After demolishing the old building, the government made temporary arrangements and built a bamboo-and-tin school at the playground,” he added.

According to him, the storm also blew off the roof of the temporary structure, severely affecting all 12 classrooms. “Only the office room is in somewhat good shape, where we are doing some paperwork. But until the school is rebuilt, we won’t be able to take classes,” he said.

Biswas said the matter has already been reported to the concerned authorities. “I tried to contact the school inspector, but they did not pick up my call. However, I have sent images of the condition through the WhatsApp group,” he added.

With over one thousand students now affected, school authorities said it has become impossible to resume classes without immediate administrative assistance, leaving the future of academic activities uncertain until urgent support arrives.