Source: The Sangai Express / Newmai News Network
Imphal, October 29 2009:
Just over 20 days to go for the completion of the current academic year for the Manipur high schools and higher secondary schools but there is no sign of the schools resuming after the closure since September 9 .
It's some 20 days left because by the later half of November the annual school examinations begin in the state.
Given this balance sheet, the organisations campaigning for the resumption of classes are now beginning to feel the futility of their effort.
All Manipur Students Union, Manipur (AMSU), Manipuri Students' Federation (MSF) and Kangleipak Students Association (KSA) are determined to continue their move of boy-cotting classes until the Chief Minister resigns holding responsibility for the July 23 'fake' encounter incident of Imphal.
Even if the the schools have to open at this point of time, it is now nearly as good as not opening altogether for this academic year.
By the end of October every year lesson plans of school books are usually completed and its the time which the school authorities term it as 'revision period' of what had been taught in the past months.
Under the aegis of the Apunba Lup, a conglomerate of several organisations, the three students' bodies have been boy-cotting classes of the educational institutions in the state.
The All Tribal Students Union, Manipur (ATSUM) had organised a public meeting on October 24 in Imphal in this regard.
Various social leaders, activists and students' leaders participated on the programme.
The Democratic Students Alliance of Manipur (DESAM) had announced few days ago that it would organise similar meeting on November 2 if the impasse continues by that time.
Meanwhile, due to this development, schools are hesitating to advertise for school admissions for the next academic session.
Otherwise, by this time educational institutions begin to rush to the newspaper offices for publicity.
Minimum number of admission notices are witnessed in newspapers this year.
Another development is the speculations doing the round in the state is the likelihood of flocking of school children to other states for the next academic session.
Even if there is no boy-cotting of classes in any year, the numerous bandhs and all kinds of pandemonium have been hampering the smooth conducting of classes in the state of Manipur for some years now.
Many schools have started even curtailing Sundays as holidays so that the loss can be made up in these universal off-days when the classes were going on.