Nepal clamps down on schools teaching Indian subjects

Kathmandu: In a move that will affect nearly 6,000 students, Nepal has ordered five private schools that teach Indian studies and subjects, to stop taking new admissions.

The Ministry of Education has asked five schools conducting examinations under India`s Central Board of Secondary Education, not to admit new students for the new academic year, official daily Gorkhapatra reported quoting District Education Officer Baikuntha Aryal. Those violating the government`s instruction will be penalised, warned Aryal. The schools running under CBSE system are Modern Indian School, Rai School, Alok Vidyashra, Rupy`s International School and Chadbagh School, according to the government daily. The education ministry said it has already sent a letter to the concerned schools in this regard saying that they cannot function with CBSE system as they were not given permission to do so. Indian Embassy officials were not available for comment in this regard as the embassy remained closed today. The decision of the education ministry will affect nearly 6,000 students who are enrolled in these schools. There are around 14 schools which are running under the Indian educational system. Indian government grants scholarships to more than 2,000 Nepalese students studying various subjects annually. Recently, the DAV Sushil Kedia Higher Secondary School, which is also run under CBSE, has been targeted with violent attacks by students` and teachers` unions affiliated to the CPN-Maoist, the breakaway faction of the Unified CPN-Maoist, apparently for teaching Indian subjects. Last year, CPN-Maoist had also forcibly banned the screening of Indian movies and entry of vehicles with Indian number plates into Nepal. The organisations have claimed that using the Indian educational system is against the national interest of Nepal. However, there are many private schools using American and British Education System in Nepal. PTI