(We want to go back to school, says students of Kendriya Vidyalaya, Ukhrul)
Ukhrul: Concerning the impact of ‘extended summer holiday’ on students’ quality of education, parents and students of Kendriya Vidyalaya school, Ukhrul held a sit in protest at Gandhi Chowk, Phungreitang on Monday.
Fed up with continued summer holiday and the impact it is creating on the students’ over all education, parents of KV appealed the concern authority to stop wasting the students’ time and resume class, saying that Ukhrul is unaffected by the prevailing crisis in the State.
The sit-in protest saw over 100 students and parents attending. Students held placards like “My school, my future”, “I missed my school and friends”, “Vacation Extension=Education Denied”, “We want resumption of class” etc.
“Due to prolong holiday, it is affecting our studies”, Mansak HA, class 11 student told the crowd during the protest.
Leishiwon HA, a concerned parent, meanwhile said, “the random extension of vacation is affecting the career of students and requested to resumed the class and let students be with teachers.”
“It is a crucial time for students especially students who are studying in Class 8 to 10 as they are at a stage where they are curious to try everything. With extended holidays, it has become a challenge for parents to control the youngsters,” informed Yuireihor Khaleng, a concerned parent.
While parents like Wungreiso Shangh fear that youngsters will divert towards bad habits in the absence of school environment.
As per the Parents Support Group (PSG), the normal summer holiday is 40 days from 8th May till 16 June each year. However, due to the current prevailing situation in Manipur, the holiday was first extended for 15 day, till 2nd July. But the parents were appalled by the second extension of another 15 days till 17 July. From 40 normal holiday it became 70 days which proved to be too much for the parents as well as for students.
A copy of memorandum was submitted to Ministry of HRD and KV authority through Deputy Commissioner, Ukhrul.
It is said that the Parents Teachers Association (PTA), Parents support Group & the Chairman, VMC, KV Ukhrul (Deputy commissioner, Ukhrul, Govt. of Manipur) have been requesting and reminding the commissioner – KVS, New Delhi and Regional office, Tinsukia region Authority not to extend holiday considering the plight of the students for ensuring quality education.
“Extending of holiday repeatedly will have negative impact on the discipline and academic career of 400 plus students of the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan. Students from urban city like Imphal could afford alternative source of lessons/courses from well-established coaching centres whereas rural town like Ukhrul does not have such facilities apart from school,” the memorandum mentioned.
It further mentioned that, “Random extending of holiday without appraising the situation of the concern Chairman, VMC, Kendriya Vidyalaya is unfair and unjust. Further extending holiday across Manipur state, we strongly felt that the right to education for the rural students have been blatantly denied by the Commissioner-KVS, New Delhi Govt. of India.”
As such, the concerned parents and students’ community of Ukhrul District strongly appealed the authority “to exclude the unaffected areas of the state from declaring blanket holiday across the school of Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan, Manipur in the future”.
It may be noted that despite the prevailing crisis embroiling the state, Ukhrul remain fairly peaceful with offices, schools and other institutions running normally.
