Vidarbha schools want morning session

Pune: The teachers and principals of schools in Vidarbha, a region that is facing severe drought and rising temperatures, have requested the State Education Department to allow them to conduct classes in the morning instead of afternoons. Many Zilla Parishad (ZP) schools have classes in the afternoon but are demanding morning slots from March.

“We have been receiving demands from schools from different areas like Gadchiroli, Chandrapur, Yavatmal, etc., that afternoon shifts of the schools must be cancelled and all the classes must be held during morning,” said Maharashtra State Secondary and Higher Secondary School Principals’ Association President Raosaheb Avari.

State President of All India Urdu Teachers Association Ilhajuddin Farooqui has also submitted a letter to Education Director (Primary) Sunil Chauhan requesting for a change in the timings.  “Right from the beginning of summer, the intensity of heat in Vidarbha is very high. High temperature poses a threat to the lives of children. Hence, the decision should be made on the policy level to change the school timings to morning shifts,” he said.

He also said that although, it is possible to make this change at the level of principals, it is a much longer process. The schools have to make a proposition and seek permission from the school management committees. Only after this, the decision will be made. Not all principals are so empowered. Thus, if the decision comes from the government, it will be much easier for everyone to implement it, he added.

However, considering the summer situation, many schools in the region have already decided to hold the schools in the morning session only. 

“With Std X Board Examinations also beginning around the same time, we have decided to hold the school only in morning time from March 1. We have been doing it for the past couple of years,” said Dattatray Bhoyar, Principal at Matoshri Chandrabhaga Chinnavar Vidyalaya in Akoli village in Yavatmal.

Rising temperatures and drought issue

• Education Director (Primary) Sunil Chauhan has informed the teachers from Vidarbha that this decision will be made not by the Education Department, but the government and that the request will be passed on.
• Talking about the amount of water it will take to run two shifts of classes, morning and afternoon, State President of All India Urdu Teachers Association Ilhajuddin Farooqui said that if all the students come to school in the same timings, it will be much easier to use the available amount of water.