Summary:
A residential school for visually impaired students in Varanasi that receives half of its funding from the Central Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is set to stop teaching classes 9 to 12 because of an alleged delay in the payment of the annual government grant for the past two years, and lack of donations.
An official of the Sri Hanuman Prashad Poddar Smriti Sewa Trust, which runs the Sri Hanuman Prashad Poddar Andh Vidyalay, blamed the “indiscipline of students” as well.
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Varanasi: A residential school for visually impaired students in Varanasi that receives half of its funding from the Central Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is set to stop teaching classes 9 to 12 because of an alleged delay in the payment of the annual government grant for the past two years, and lack of donations.
An official of the Sri Hanuman Prashad Poddar Smriti Sewa Trust, which runs the Sri Hanuman Prashad Poddar Andh Vidyalay, blamed the “indiscipline of students” as well.
However, several of the 29 students at risk told The Indian Express that the decision was taken because the school is in the heart of the city, and some traders want to build a mall at its site.
“They are planning to shut down the school in a phased manner.
They want to build a mall here,” alleged a student, who did not wish to be identified.
The Trust’s joint secretary, Akhilesh Khemka, dismissed the allegation, calling it baseless.
“How can a mall be built here? The land belongs to the Trust and not the school…There is rule of law in the country.