With many schools adopting a wait-and-watch approach on the eve of the bandh, attendance was thin in the ones that remained open on Wednesday, as parents did not want to take any chances.
Some schools had declared a holiday on Tuesday evening, but many remained conclusively open while the rest sat on the fence. The uncertainty left some school authorities as well as parents fuming.
“Why is it that the authorities concerned do not take any call during such situations? What does it mean when they ask us to take a call depending on the prevailing situation? Are we not putting our children’s life at risk? Such confusion prevailed when former President APJ Abdul Kalam passed away recently. Authorities must give a clear message to managements whether to remain open or not during such situations. It is pretty difficult to convince parents,” said a principal of a private school.
Mansoor Khan, management member of DPS Group of schools, said they had informed parents that they would take a call only in the late evening during such situations. “We wait for instructions from the authorities concerned. On Tuesday, we took the decision to remain closed at 8.30 p.m. We have a software to reach parents. We reached out to all the 19,000 parents in one go. One message is sent from the administration department and another from the transport department. There was absolutely no confusion,” he said.
