100 million school days lost to unrest

Rifat Mohidin

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, September 20

Over 100 million school days have been lost by more than 15 lakh students in the Valley as the lockdown due to the ongoing unrest entered the 74th day today.

If one counts individual working days lost by more than 15 lakh students in the troubled region, the losses are enormous. The loss of total working days of all students is more than 100 million days. “I paid the fees of my son in the school even though schools were shut. I am concerned about the future of my son,” said Naseer Ahmad of Srinagar.

Many parents said safety was more important for them and they would not send their children to school till they did not feel safe. Students had become victims of pellets at many places.

“We feel sad about the loss to our children, but cannot think of sending them to school. Even one-year-olds have been hit by pellets. We are concerned about the safety of our children, which the government has failed to ensure,” said Shubeena of Kamrazpora in Pulwama.

On July 20, the government decided to open schools in Bandipora, Baramulla, Budgam and Ganderbal, which were relatively peaceful districts. There was no response from teachers and students due to shutdowns and curfew. The efforts made by the government so far had failed to convince parents to send their wards to school fearing for their safety.

Figures of the Directorate of School Education, Kashmir, show that there are more than 15 lakh students in nearly 12,000 schools. Education Department officials said the current agitation had caused irreparable damage to the system.