New Delhi, Aug. 25 -- Governments of at least four states have started taking some corrective steps following protests by school students in Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra this month. Sporadic protests have also been reported from other states. The protests, which gained momentum after the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), on August 15, Independence Day, launched a national "School Thik Karo Abhiyan" (Reform Schools Campaign) to expose poor infrastructure and teaching facilities in schools, were mostly about inadequate staffing, poor midday meals and bad infrastructure. Since then protests have been reported from at least nine locations in Rajasthan including Jaipur and Bharatpur, three in Uttar Pradesh, two from Madhya Pradesh and at least three places in Maharashtra. While states have denied any connection between CJP's campaign and their actions, the coincidence is hard to miss. In Rajasthan, protests were reported from Bikaner, Jaipur, Alwar, Bharatpur, Ajmer, Jalore, Barmer, Banswara and Bharatpur. At least 69 girl students of a residential Sainik School in Bikaner protested at the collectorate on Sunday, alleging that they had not received uniforms four months after the school opened. School principal Anil Sharma said Rs.6 crore had been sanctioned for uniforms, books and other annual facilities, and uniforms will be provided soon. On August 5, hearing and speech impaired students at Jaipur's Poddar School protested over poor hostel conditions, inadequate facilities and alleged harassment leading to suspension of the principal. On August 13 and 14, students of Government Higher Secondary School in Jodhawas, Alwar, staged a two-day sit-in on the school premises over poor infrastructure facilities, after which district eduction officer assured them that repairs would be carried out. In Jalore, students locked their school gate over teacher shortage, prompting authorities to arrange five teachers temporarily and promise three more. In in Bharatpur, the education department cancelled a principal's transfer following a student protest. To quell the protests the Rajasthan education department had prohibited "unauthorised" entry by outsiders into government schools, evoking strong reaction from political parties and activists. Former chief minister Ashok Gehlot termed the order as an attempt to "hide" inefficiency of the education department; education minister Madan Dilawar claimed the order was issued for students' safety. In Uttar Pradesh, hundreds of students in government run residential schools Unnao, Lucknow, Fatehpur and Hamirpur staged protests this month. The latest was protest by students of Jai Prakash Narayan Sarvodaya Vidyalaya in Niyotani Nagar Panchayat in Hasanganj tehsil over teacher shortages . In Lucknow, girls of a government-run residential school staged a protest amid heavy rain on August 14, the second demonstration by students of the institution in four days primarily over a shortage of teachers and disruption of classes, officials said. UP minister Asim Arun spoke to the protesting students and assured them their grievances would be addressed. The CJP has endorsed a Gen Alpha protest in Uttar Pradesh's Hamirpur, where schoolchildren blocked the main gate of the district collectorate this month to demand a proper road to their village. And students in Bhattpurwa Samuhi, Uttar Pradesh, took to the streets demanding action over a long-delayed school building, chanting "Where is our school?" Social welfare department director Sanjeev Singh said officials had spoken to the students and efforts were being made to resolve their grievances through dialogue. Officials also said that effort is being made to expedite the appointments of teachers held up due to proceedings in the Allahabad high court. In Madhya Pradesh, school girls protested in Sironj over an increase in bus fare from Rs.10 to Rs.25 to reach their school in Vidisha and students of Maharani Lakshmi Bai Government Girls' Higher Secondary School in Ujjain protested over shifting of their school to Daukhedi, about 15 km away. In the first case, sub-divisional magistrate Om Narayan Badkul said the bus fare will continue to be Rs.10 for students and in Ujjain, officials scrapped the plan to shift the school. In Maharashtra, the state government has asked district collectors and divisional commissioners to tap alternative sources of funding for the construction and upkeep of schools as around 90% of Rs.88,000 crore budget is spent on the salaries of teachers. This came after CJP founder Abhijit Dipke visited several schools across the state, particularly in Marathwada, and highlighted various shortcomings....