Puttur: DDPI Order Leaves High School Students in the Lurch

By Mounesh Vishwakarma
Daijiworld Media Network—Puttur (RD/CN)
 
Puttur, Jun 8: Police resorted to lathi-charge six times on locals gathered on the campus of Shastriji High School, Punacha, near here, on Monday June 7.

This was a repercussion of the Deputy Director of Public Instructions (DDPI) implementing the order that the school be shut down because of its unauthorized status.

The students were forced to go out of the school campus and all the classrooms were locked.  The students shouted slogans and police arrived on the scene.  The local residents, the area MLA, and local leaders of both Congress and BJP gathered at the school. 

Puttur MLA Mallika Prasad arrived at the spot along with her supporters and held talks with the office-bearers of the school development committee.  The local residents urged her to make arrangements for the students to continue their studies. 

Prasad said that the school cannot legally function in the unauthorized building. She assured them that she would try to get sanction for a new government school to accommodate these students who face an uncertain future. 
 
Assistant superintendent of police Dr Singh arrived at the school when he was informed of the escalating controversy.  He held separate talks with the local MLA and school governing council who agreed that if DDPI arrived at the spot and presented the original copy of closure-order of school, they would abide by it. 

Dr Singh instructed Bantwal circle inspector Srikanth and Vittal sub-inspector Pavitra Tej to follow his orders.
 
Prasad waited in a classroom for nearly two and a half hours for DDPI Chame Gowda to arrive along with Bantwal block education officer K Sudhakar. 

Then Gowda held talks with Prasad, Congress leader Bondala Jagannath Shetty, M N Mohammed, high school governing council president Vittal Shetty and others. 

The talks discussed the future of 114 students who are currently studying in Shastriji High School.  It was decided to upgrade the local government primary school to high school and absorb the students seeking admissions to Class VIII, besides urging the parents of students of Class IX and Class X to seek admissions in other schools. 

Despite the opposition of Bondala Jagannath Shetty and M S Mohammed Prasad insisted that the DDPI seal the locks of the entire school and advised the police to take necessary action against those who try to break open the locks.  The group of students shouted slogans as the MLA exited the school campus.
 
Former MP Vinay Kumar Sorake also put in an appearance and discussed the matter with Gowda. The police, heeding the protest of students and their parents, did not seal the locks and instead untied the white piece of cloth fastened to the keyhole. 

The groups of people began to clash at that time and the policemen resorted to lathi-charge to disperse the mob from the school campus. 

 RSS Pramukh Dr Prabhakar Bhat held the last round of talks over the issue with former Sorake, Bondala Jagannath Shetty, Mohammed, school correspondent Ushalaxmi and a few office-bearers of the school’s governing council. 

Dr Bhat announced that it was due to the trustees – Harsha Shastry and his wife, promoter of Shastriji High School— that the students face an uncertain future and this was fiercely opposed by Sorake. 

Later, the order of the education department was read out to the gathering.  The order clearly stated that due to the unauthorized building, the school was forced to shut down and the locks were sealed in the presence of DDPI Chame Gowda. 

Governing council key office-bearer Marappa Shetty, Ravi Kiran, teacher Harsha Shastry, correspondent Ushalaxmi, Raghav Poojary, Mahesh Shetty, Sridar Shetty, Subbanna Shastry, Krishna Shastry, Vittal Shastry, Mahadev Shastry, Ravishankar Shastry, Rajeev Bhandary, and Punacha Sri Devi High School correspondent Jayashyam, Jagdish, Ravindra T, and Gopalakrishna Herale were involved in the talks.