A recent study has documented severe educational deprivation among children living near the Jawahar Nagar landfill in Hyderabad, attributed to poverty, pollution, and institutional neglect. The landfill, spanning 300 acres, is the world's fourth largest source of methane emissions.
Key Findings on Educational Barriers
According to the study titled 'Educational Deprivation and Environmental Inequality in Peri-Urban Slums: Socio-Spatial and Institutional Barriers to Education – A Case Study of Jawahar Nagar, Hyderabad' by M Kamraju, published in the journal Education, Sustainability & Society, 78% of households are located more than one kilometre from the nearest school, and nearly 30% are over three kilometres away. With private transport rare, children face unsafe roads, leading to irregular attendance and dropouts.
Economic hardship compounds the problem. Nearly half of families earn under Rs 10,000 a month, forcing survival needs to outweigh education. Financial pressures account for 34% of dropouts, while child labour, including waste picking and daily wage work, pushes another 21% out of classrooms.
Environmental and Health Impact
About 41% of households live within one kilometre of the landfill, enduring foul smells and toxic smoke. As a result, 33% of children suffer respiratory illnesses, 27% face waterborne diseases, and 57% of households report frequent school absences due to poor health.
Gender Inequality and Migration
Gender inequality is evident: irregular attendance among girls stands at 46%, compared with 32% for boys, linked to domestic duties, safety concerns, and lack of separate sanitation facilities. Additionally, 62% of residents are migrant families, and frequent movement disrupts learning and creates documentation obstacles during admissions, Kamraju noted.
Institutional Weaknesses
“These problems are reinforced by institutional weaknesses, including shortages of teachers, high pupil–teacher ratios, inadequate infrastructure, and limited awareness of existing govt welfare schemes,” Kamraju pointed out. The study urges coordinated action, new government schools within settlements, qualified teachers, better classrooms, flexible learning options, bridge courses, and targeted scholarships.
“The importance of gender-responsive planning—especially separate toilets and menstrual hygiene facilities for girls—along with school health programmes, environmental education, and simpler, barrier-free admission processes for migrant children,” Kamraju says, concluding that sustainable urban development cannot be achieved if marginalised children remain excluded.
