Education department should form monitoring committee for private schools: SCPCR
Friday, 22 March 2024 | PNS | DEHRADUN
The State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (SCPCR) has stated that the Education department should form a monitoring committee to conduct inspections of private schools to prevent students from the burden of school bags.
Stating this, SCPCR member Vinod Kaparwan said that the commission recently inspected a private school in Dehradun where it was observed that students in the school were carrying heavy school bags, despite the prescribed criteria in the Right to Education (RTE) Act. In response to this, the commission provided guidelines to the school regarding the weight of school bags. Additionally, it instructed the chief education officer Pradeep Rawat to inspect schools in Dehradun to ensure that children are not burdened with the excessive weight of school bags.
Commenting on the weight of the school bags, Kaparwan said that according to the RTE act, students from class I to VI are required to carry school bags weighing up to two kilogrammes, while students in higher classes can carry bags weighing up to four kilogrammes. However, many schools in Dehradun are not adhering to the RTE guidelines. They are adding unnecessary books and increasing the burden of school bags for children, he said.
Kaparwan further highlighted that ahead of the commencement of the upcoming school session, the commission has decided to conduct random inspections regarding the weighing of school bags. Any school found engaging in such practices will face strict repercussions.
“The schools adding extra books beyond the syllabus for monetary gain is a matter of concern. It is imperative for the Education department to consistently monitor such actions of schools as they directly impact the students’ mental and physical well-being. In order to alleviate the burden of heavy school bags, the Education department should address this issue by establishing a monitoring committee specifically for private schools,” he said.
