“Killings, arrests, pellets have closed schools not anything else”
JKNT
Srinagar, September 21: Kashmir Private Schools Association (KPSA) has come down heavily on attempts by certain quarters to politicise the education and portray its opening or closing as a only indicator of normalcy.
The Association said that schools are part of the society and equally suffers if society is suffering. The Association in a statement said that on one hand government is continuously killing people majority of whom are students and on the other hand it is ordering them to resume their classes. “Govt is blaming resistance camp for closing schools but the reality is that it is the government forces that have unleashed war on its citizens. Resistance camp didn’t kill any student and it is the government forces that have killed dozens of students and injured thousands,” said G N Var president KPSA. “Not to be content with killing students they have killed teachers too and vandalised and destroyed school properties. Hundreds of our students have been targeted with pellets.”
Citing the example of 11 year old Nasir Shafi Qazi, a student of Greenlight school Nishat, the Association said that Nasir was one of the most gentle students of the school and still he was killed in cold blood. “He was just a child. He was not involved in any stone pelting and government forces didn’t spare him too. What is the guarantee that lakhs of our students will be safe in case schools are resumed,” said Var.”Similarly in Shopian, government forces unleashed such a terror on civilians that class 7 student Khushboo died of cardiac arrest. Students are not safe in their homes and how can they be secure in schools?”
The Association said that government forces is creating nightmare situation for students wherein nobody is safe. “Be it Home Ministry or Police, everybody is stating that schools will open and normalcy will return. Why cant you provide us cordial atmosphere and not vice versa,” said Var. “Our students, teachers and schools are part of the society and we like others are also suffering.”
The Association dismissed the government assertion that an education session is lost and children are pushed to dark times. “It is the government which is contributing the most to the situation. If they are sincere just remove the curbs on internet for our schools and we will cover 80 percent of our syllabus with the help of smart classes and we will share the same with every student including of government schools,” said Var. “We have means and options to educate our children in our homes too but it is government that is blocking every avenue.”
The Association said that resuming of schools is insignificant as any loss is easily recoverable. In 90’s we lost multiple sessions in succession and still our generation got education and at many places excelled by huge margins.
The Association condemned the government for stressing on exams as the same will affect mental health of children. “Regarding lost of school days we suffered during floods and election time. There was no hurry at that time when government took pleasure in closing schools and deferring exams. But now suddenly they are worried for students. This is hypocrisy. Every now and then exams have been deferred so why not now,” he said.
The Association also negated the government claims that there is mass migration of students to Jammu. “According to our schools in Jammu, just 700 to 800 students have gone there which is normal every year.” said Var.
The Association asked the government to address cause of the current uprising and desist from taking cosmetic operations wherein schools are being made sacrificial goats.
