War on burden: DEOs start surprise checks of schoolbag weight

AHMEDABAD: District education officer (DEO) following the directive of the state government has checked about 35 schools in the city and found that the weight of the bags of almost all students was over 2kg in class I and II. The DEO after examining the bag physically, even weighed them.
The officials said that in majority of the cases, the students were found to be carrying bags heavier than what the government has prescribed. In some of the schools, the management had followed the government resolution and made changes in the time-table.

The state government had earlier issued a directive to all district education officers and district primary education officers to conduct surprise raids in schools and check the weight of schoolbags carried by children.

The education department has asked all DEOs to carry out checks in at least three schools every week irrespective of the board to which a school belongs. DEOs have been asked to check schools affiliated to Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board according to Gujarat government rules, while those affiliated to Central Board of Secondary Education will be checked according to CBSE standards.

In the last week of November, after the government of India’s decision, the Gujarat government had also announced that it will act against schools not following the schoolbag weight criteria and that are forcing children to carry bulky bags.

Education minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama said, “We have issued a directive to all education officers to check and prepare a list of schools flouting schoolbag norms. We will first issue notices and if the schools fail to reduce the bag weights we will penalize them. The government is working outthe penalty for such schools.”

Chudasama said no homework is to be assigned to students of classes I and II. Only half an hour of homework can be given classes III to V students and the same for Classes VII and VIII students can be one hour per day.

A district education officer said, “It will be difficult for us to check the exact weight of the bags as we will not be carrying weighing machines. Inspectors who will be going to the schools will be using their own judgment by looking at the bags and holding it in their hands.”

He said, “We have asked the schools to schedule their periods in such a way that the student is not required to carry all text books. According to government direction classes for only three to four subjects are to be held in a day. The notebooks for homework and classwork should not be separate. There shall be no separate notebook for essay writing.”