The State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (SCPCR) recently issued a warning to a private school to follow guidelines, concerning the weight of the school bag of young students after it observed violations during its recent inspection at a private school in Rishikesh. The commission members found that the weight of the bag of class III students was 6.75 kilogrammes whereas the bag of class XI students weighed seven kilogrammes, which was much higher than permissible limits. Concerning this SCPCR issued a guideline and issued a final warning to the school.  

Talking to The Pioneer, SCPCR member Vinod Kaprwan said, “On Wednesday we conducted a surprise inspection at the school in Rishikesh to check any possible irregularities and fee hike. However, we noticed that the weight of the school bag is much higher than the weight mentioned in the new education policy.” 

He further said that in the new education policy a class III student is allowed to carry a school bag weighing only two to three kilogrammes. Heavy school bags are detrimental to both the physical and mental health of the children. Concerning this we have issued a guideline and issued a final warning to the school. If they don’t follow the prescribed guidelines, the commission will take action against them, he added.

 Commenting on the heavy weight of school bags, clinical psychologist Pratibha Sharma said, “Every school must implement the standards in the new education policy. The weight of the school bag should be less than 10 percent of the body weight. Heavy school bags affect the child physically and mentally. The government is also responsible as the authorities at times do not check if the guidelines are being implemented.” She further opined that the government must appeal to the schools to follow the guidelines and perform a regular inspection of the schools.

A parent Sapna Negi said that carrying a heavy school bag puts the children under stress. Both the school and parents are responsible to ensure the bags are not heavier than permissible. Parents must check whether their kids are carrying books according to the timetables. All schools must follow guidelines in the education policy, she opined.