Bengaluru: Hundreds of parents gathered in front of Narayana E-Techno School and PU College in Koramangala to protest non-sanctioning of affiliation.
The reason: the school had permission to function only in Kannada medium of instruction, but over the last year, the school, claiming that they are CBSE-affiliated, has been collecting huge fees from the students and have upgraded to English medium of instruction.
“We requested the CBSE Board officials last month to come and grant us affiliation since all the files pertaining to the school getting the affiliation are ready,” said one of the teachers on conditions of anonymity.
The protests started at 8 in the morning and went on until 12 noon. Parents were shouting slogans and staging sitins.
“It was not a flash protest, the school management has been very irresponsible over a long time and parents are angry.
When the news of the Cambridge School rape and its repercussions broke, we parents panicked about the authenticity of the school as our children’s future matters,” said Surya Narayan, parent of a 7th standard and 5thstandard student.
“Narayana E Techno School has around 21 branches in the city and we have learned that only four schools have actual licenses to function with medium of instruction in English, all the others are illegal,” said Dinesh, another parent.
Close to 900 students, including the PU College students, were sent SMSes late in the night that the school will be closed on Thursday.
“Knowing very well the previous night that the parents were about to protest on Thursday, Principal, Thirupathi Rao managed to declare a holiday for the school saying it was Guru Nanak Jayanti,” added Surya Narayan, the parent.
The principal did not turn up at the school, while a few teachers turned up to answer the queries of the parents.
Parents accused the school of taking huge fees under the garb of being a CBSE-affiliated school, promising the parents that their wards will be monitored by two supporting teachers and a main teacher per classroom and individual attention was guaranteed.
Meanwhile, according to the sources at the DPI, after the publication of the list of schools recognized by various agencies and their medium of instruction, the department has been flooded with complaints.
“The main issue is the medium of instruction. Many schools which have received permission to operate in Kannada medium of instruction are charging hefty fees in the name of CBSE/ICSE affiliation,” said an officer.
