Parents of several students of Little Flower High School at Abids have complained that the school holds unduly long morning assembly, resulting in many children fainting due to the heat. Parents said at least five students have fainted in the last fortnight during the school’s assembly, which lasted for over half-an-hour. They alleged that the school management seemed to be callous about the issue despite complaints.
Mr Satish Kumar (name changed) said, “My child fainted during the assembly this week, but we were not aware of it till he told us. The class teacher said these incidents are common and children who do not have breakfast before coming to school usually faint. But that is not true at least in my child’s case.”
Many other parents said the school authorities never informed them about such incidents. Another parent, Ms Sri Laxmi, said, “Similar incidents took place last year as well, but the teachers do not take the issue seriously. They perhaps consider it normal for children to faint (due to heat).” Mr Krishna Kumar, whose child goes to the same school, said, “It takes at least five minutes for teachers to attend to a child who has fainted. But the injury to sensitive areas of a young body can aggravate during those crucial few minutes.”
School principal Brother Vincent Mendonza said, “I always request students to sit down during lengthy school programmes, and class teachers ask sick students to stay back in classrooms during those sessions. Besides, immediate action is taken when such incidents occur during school hours.”