Despite directives from the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to include physical exercises as part of the subject of Disaster Management,government schools have not made any such provisions. The Board has asked schools to conduct mock exercises,like fire drills,to train students in handling natural and human-induced disasters. The main purpose,according to the CBSE notice,was to inculcate a culture of preparedness in schools and help them build a disaster management framework. These exercises are to be conducted free of cost. Even as some government schools are yet to include the topic (of disaster management) in their timetable,students express ignorance on the matter. Only those who are part of the NCC are given such training. No one in the school has informed us about such exercises being part of the curriculum, said a student of Government Model Senior Secondary School,Sector 22. Another student of GMSSS-19 said that preference is given to sports students. Teachers specifically shortlist sportspersons as they are agile and considered fit for the drills, said the student. The schools,however,explain the aberration in terms of the poor response received from students. We started with drills after the morning assembly,but not many students took the initiative to be part of it. Hence,we had to suspend the classes, said a principal. The Director Public Instructions (Schools) was unavailable for comments.
