Students prefer moving to UT schools after Class X

Panchkula has around six private senior secondary schools and around 30 government schools. The average strength of students in Class XI and XII in private schools in all the streams ranges from 80-100,which is lesser than the number of students who appear for Class X examination in these schools.

In DAV Public Senior Secondary School,Sector 8,there are around 80 students in Class XI. The number of students who appeared for Class X boards from the school were over 130.

School principal Santosh Bhandari calls it “a trend of moving to greener pastures of UT”.

“The main reason why students leave after Class X is that they want to be a part of the UT pool and secure a seat in a college there. Territorially,it is considered as tricity but there is discrimination against our students in the education policy. They,too,should be made part of the pool even if they are studying here,” she said.

The situation is similar in other schools as well. Bhavan Vidyalaya,Sector 15,has a strength of around 61 students in Class XI and 65 in the current batch of Class XII,while over 160 students had passed from Class X this year. In DC Model School,Sector 7,of the over 120 students who had appeared for Class X exams,only 50 per cent of them have sought admission in Class XI. In Yadavindra Public School,Mohali,there are around 60 students in Class XII and approximately the same number in Class XI,according to the school. Over 100 students had passed the Class X Board examinations from YPS in class X this year.

Shashi Banerjee,principal,Bhavan Vidyalya,rues that the schools are treated as surrogate because of the policy. “We groom the child right from Class I when he joins the school and after matriculation,he flies away to UT schools to seek a place in the UT pool. We cannot stop them and jeopardise their career but we do feel the pinch of losing out on meritorious students.” BB Gupta,principal,DC Model,shares her views,“The student does not become more intelligent by moving a few kilometres. We have equally good faculty but not many avail them. Another reason for this is that the township also lacks good colleges. So students prefer planning their admission in UT right after Class XI.” Government schools too say that they feel a sense of loss on meritorious students which affects the results.

The schools claim to have taken up the matter with the UT Administration as well as state government many a times and are still waiting to hear from them.

They reason that there should be a tricity pool in view of the territorial set up. “We have asked the UT administration that students from the township should also be included in the UT pool. There should not be any discrimination when the tricity is a collective unit of Panchkula,Mohali and UT,” said Jaya Bhardwaj,principal,Hansraj Public School,Sector 6.

While Education Secretary,UT,Ram Niwas was not available for comments,SS Prasad,Director Higher Education,Haryana,expressed ignorance about the matter. “I am not aware that the schools are facing this problem. Now that I have been informed,I would look into it and take up with the UT administration accordingly,” he said.