City schools, colleges face T wrath

While the agitators in some cases vandalised property and even manhandled staff of private schools and colleges for attempting to conduct classes, in most cases the institutions remained closed as per the instructions of the Telangana JAC and student unions.

Among the institutions that were affected the most were those located in the Andhra pockets of the city including Kukatpally and Dilsukhnagar. NRI Junior College, located near Kukatpally Housing Board was vandalised by agitators even as 60 students tried to enter the college premises with the help of their parents. Trouble started at 10 am when 60 students of the college along with their parents tried to enter campus under the watch of police officials. According to Kukatpally police, members of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi Vidyarthi Vibhag (TRSVV) blocked the entrance of the college, roughed up parents and students and even ransacked the college. The parents’ association of the college petitioned Kukatpally police for protection to run classes.

Even schools were not spared by Telangana activists. Meridian School, Kukatpally, which reopened on Monday, was shuttered down and the students were sent back home even before classes began. About 50 protesters stopped the school bus and forced the school authorities to drop the students back at their respective homes, parents complained.

Other schools that were forced to close include Glendale Academy, Bandlaguda, Oakridge International School, Kondapur and Jubilee Hills Public School, Jubilee Hills. Officials of state run schools located at Himayathnagar, Naryanaguda and Serilingamapally also complained of being forced to close. “About five schools were closed down by protesters even after we asked for police help to run classes,” said a school representative. The agitators targeted the schools around 10 am, officials said. Miffed with the disruption of classes, representatives of CBSE and ICSE schools said that the agitators should understand that the students from the region will suffer the most if educational institutions are not allowed to function.

“CBSE and ICSE boards will not change their examination dates for any regional disturbance. The Telangana leadership should allow schools to function as we are expected to finish the syllabus before pre-board examinations that are scheduled to start in the first week of January,” said principal of a college located in Jubilee Hills. Officials said that all schools located in Banjara Hills, Jubilee Hills and Madhapur were called up by Telangana-JAC representatives on Monday morning to warn the officials of dire consequences if they remained open.

In another incident, Osmania University students vandalised the Institute of Public Enterprise located on the campus. The students pelted the institute with stones that had opened for an emergency meeting between OU officials and a delegation from a foreign university. The students of Telangana Vidyarthi Ikya Vedika (TVIV) broke glass windows and damaged property in the reception counter, auditorium, and classrooms. About 14 computers and four LCD TVs were also damaged. While the university had ordered that its campus and all affiliated and constituent colleges would reopen, K Mahesh, president of TVIV said that students will keep a vigil at all buildings within the university campus and will not allow staff to work.

Some schools including Delhi Public School, Gachibowli, St Marks’ School, Bowenpally and Johnson Grammar School, Habsiguda declared holiday in advance to avoid trouble. Also, all branches of Narayana and Sri Chaitanya Junior Colleges remained closed on Monday fearing trouble. However, other colleges including Loyola Degree College, Alwal, Villa Marie, Yousufguda and St Francis, Begumpet remained open, though the student turn out was not much.

Representatives of aided private schools of the city are optimistic that more schools might open in the next two days as some of the AP State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) buses will start plying from Tuesday. “We are expecting the situation to become normal in the next few days as more schools have promised to open soon,” said S Srinivas Reddy, convener, Recognised School Managements’ Association. He, however, said that on Monday 40 per cent of 1,800 schools remained closed fearing trouble.

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