Varanasi: Large scale irregularities found at private school, says UPSCPCR

VARANASI: The UP State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (UPSCPCR) claimed to have detected large scale irregularities at the reputed school, where a 9-year-old class three girl student was sexually assaulted by sweeper on November 26, during their inspection of the school on Tuesday.
UPSCPCR members, Ashok Yadav and Nirmala Patel said the school authorities did not cooperate in commissions inspection. At the second floor of the school, where classroom of the girl exists, no girls toilet was present and it was being constructed now. We will send the findings of our inspection to the commission in details for further action, they added.
Both the UPSCPCR members reached the school with the chairman of child welfare committee Sneha Upadhyaya, its members- Akhilesh Mishra and Sheel Chandra Kishore, district child protection officer Nirupama Singh and policemen on Tuesday morning.
Yadav said on entering the school premises, school coordinator, academic head and class teacher of girl informed them that the director of school, principal, dean and other senior officials had gone to appear before the Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed by police for investigation in this episode. They expressed their inability in telling anything about the incident by mentioning that they had not been authorized to tell anything to anyone by the higher authorities of school, said Yadav.
Yadav said despite the non-cooperation of school staff, they were given a format to provide details related to inhuman act committed with minor girl students in written, both in hard and soft copies, to the commission within three days. In case of not providing these information in given time, the commission will initiate necessary legal action, he added.
The DCPO said irregularities in school were evident during the inspection as the girls toilet, which should exist at each floor as per the prescribed guidelines, was not available at the floor where the girl studied. Construction of toilet was found in progress at such floor, she added.
Meanwhile, amidst the progress in SIT probe, the commissioner of police A Satish Ganesh convened a meeting with the authorities of all principals and managers of all schools of city and asked them to ensure total compliance of the prescribed guidelines of CBSE and other boards to avoid recurrence of untoward incident with any student and provide a safe and healthy atmosphere to them.