Schools in Chandigarh remain shut to protest against derecognition

Around 2,650 private schools affiliated to Punjab School Education Board remained shutdown here today in protest against the state government's recent decision to derecognise 187 schools for their alleged failure to provide basic salaries to staff.

"It is not possible for the affiliated schools to pay the exorbitant hike in basic pay to the teachers and other staff," Recognised and Affiliated Schools Association President Arvinder Singh Mann said.

Seeking immediate withdrawal of its decision to derecognise 187 schools by the State government, he said that it has been decide to close down the affiliated schools for two days from today.

"A meeting of office bearers of the Association has been summoned tomorrow to decide further course of action," he said. Mann also demanded that these private schools must get affiliation from the CBSE, instead of PSEB.

"In CBSE board examination a student has to appear in five papers as against ten papers in the PSEB affiliated schools," he said.

With the closure of over 2500 affiliated schools across Punjab, studies of around ten lakh students have been affected at a time when the examinations are drawing closer.