They wake up early,skip breakfast to go to school,say parents

“Is it possible for a small kid to get up early morning and immediately start eating? Even adults find it impossible,” said a Jayshree Marale,a retired school principal. The ideal school timing,she says,should be 8.30 am or 9 am.

Parents complain that every day they have to dragged out their kids of the bed. Jayant Kariya,a resident of Dapodi,whose daughter goes to St Andrews School,Chinchwad,said,“My daughter never eats in the morning. No matter how much we plead,she says she does not feel like eating…” Kariya said his daughter’s school starts at 7.10 am and she leaves by 6.45 am.

Shridhar Chalkha of Nigdi says his son studies in Jnana Prabodhini School,Nigdi,which starts at 7 am. “He takes his dabba and refuses to eat anything. A parent said,“If the child doesn’t eat anything,how will he or she concentrate on studies with empty stomach.”

A vehicle driver who ferries children to D Y Patil Public Pimpri,which belongs to State Minister Satej Patil’s family,says he picks up a Class I child at as early as 6 am. “The parents tell me that the child gets up at 5.30 am. They always request me to come a few minutes late so that the child gets time to eat,” he said.

The school,which earlier was hailed as the one with best timing of 1 pm for primary students in Pimpri-Chinchwad,has changed its timing to 7.15 am. Principal Mridula Mahajan said timings are the decided by the school management. Pramod Patil,director,said he would look into this issue. Leela Bhasakaran,grandmother of Class III girl student,said her granddaughter has never had breakfast for the last three years because of early morning timings. “My granddaughter has to leave home by 6.30 am. She gets her first meal by 10.30 am. We know it is unhealthy,but there is no alternative,” she said.

Supriya Bhagwat,a parent of Class 5 girl,said,“The overall time her daughter spends for attending school and tuition thereafter is nearly 12 hours.”

A tempo driver who ferries students up to Class 7 said,“Sometimes children use the vehicle as their loo as in the early morning they find it difficult to empty their stomach.” What worries the parents most is that the tiffin box which is packed at 6 am is opened by children at 10 am. “My child screams at me for packing ‘watery’ food. The food is bound to lose its nutrients. How can we ensure the child’s health?” a mother asked.

Former PCMC health chief Dr R R Iyyer said,”Three years ago,we had conducted a survey and found that children do not get enough sleep and rest. This was during the height of swine flu. If a child’s immunity has to be increased,the child needs enough sleep and warm food.” He added,“The morning hours are very important for sleep. If schools start late,the child will get enough sleep and also feel like eating. “

(With inputs from Prasad Joshi)