KOLKATA: Headmaster of a higher secondary school in West Bengal’s West Midnapore district was slapped with a show-cause notice after he opened the institute and resumed studies of Class 10 on Wednesday.
The headmaster's move is against the instructions of both the Centre and the state government.
As the news reached the education department, the district school inspector visited the school on Thursday, collected statements of the students and their guardians, and teachers of the institute. "The headmaster was served the show cause notice on the basis of the preliminary findings of the school inspector," said an official of the school education department.
Brindaban Ghatak, the headmaster of BC Roy Higher Secondary School at Ghatal, decided to resume classes from Wednesday with the students of Class 10. "The decision was taken because online classes were not effective due to students’ poor access to compatible mobile handsets and poor network connectivity. A section of guardians, too, requested me to resume studies," said Ghatak.
All the Class 10 students were informed on Tuesday and they were asked to attend the science and English classes. "Out of 150 students, 52 turned up to attend classes and 25 among 37 teachers were present in the school. Classes continued for three hours maintaining social distancing norm," said a teacher of the school.
A section of the guardians was against Ghatak’s decision. They informed the local police station which informed the district administration. The Ghatal sub-division, where the school is located, is one of the zones in the district from where highest number of Covid-19 positive cases have been reported.
"The headmaster was immediately contacted and he was asked not to resume studies on Thursday as it goes against the instruction of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s announcement that all schools, colleges and universities shall remain closed till August 31," said an official of the district administration.
Chapeshwar Sardar, the district school inspector, said the headmaster’s decision was a gross violation of the state government’s instruction. "An inquiry has been ordered and the headmaster has been asked to come up with his explanation," he said.
Asked about the show cause notice, Ghatak admitted that his decision of resuming studies was wrong. "It was a wrong decision. I am ready to face all action that the school education department will take," he said.