CHILDREN

School might lose its recognition if the ISCE board considers the State government's request. Pic: Nikita Malusare The already-battered parents of Vibgyor High school students in Marathahalli, Bengaluru, were in for a rude shock on July 18, 2014, Friday late evening. In the backdrop of widespread criticism in the media, the Department of Public Instruction, Karnataka, wrote to ICSE board, requesting that the recognition given to Vibgyor High school in Marathahalli, be withdrawn. A press release from Commissioner for Public Instruction, Mohammad Mohsin, stated: “The Department has viewed seriously on a sexual assault on a child studying in that [Vibgyor]…

This write up was originally posted by Nitya Ramakrishnan on Whitefield Rising website, and has been re-posted here with permission. This article in  Times of India outlines what happenned. 16 individuals/groups are involved. And most of us are in this list! Interestingly, the choice each one makes determines the outcome of this case and potentially affects the next rape about to happen. So are we inadvertently supporting rape? The teacher that locked the little 6-year-old in a room, in the school (per the article in TOI) The Rapists The teacher that seems to have found out and brought the doctor The…

Facts as outlined by Police on Vibgyor High school case: "Alleged act on July 2nd. Complaint received on 14th. Full co-operation by School during investigation. Two people in custody as of 16th. Investigation at 80% completion and they are likely to conclude by 18th." It implied they were very close to conclusion. July 17th: On request from Vibgyor parents and in a gesture of solidarity for the victim, Whitefield Rising requested all on the group to support a protest meeting organised by the parents. Their objective was to get Mr Rustam to answer the many questions they had. They had…

Parents protesting on Vibgyor High premises in Marathahalli on Thursday. Pic:Nikita Malusare Sending a child to school just isn’t the same any more. The latest incident that reinforces this unfortunate truth is what happened at the Marathahalli branch of Vibgyor High School, one of the more reputed private schools in the city, catering largely to educated upper middle class parents, many of them migrants to the city. On 2 July, a child studying in the first grade was punished with ‘isolation’ in another room of the same school, during which two men, at least one among them reportedly being a…

July 15 was the deadline for the public to send in comments and suggestions  to the government’s ministry of labour and employment, about the proposed amendment to the law on child labour (prohibition). An NGO, Walkfree, working on child labour abolition had put out alerts, urging the public to sign the petition to the government, but at last count just before the deadline, there were only around 2,300 signatures. In a country of 1.2 billion people, this hardly qualifies as “popular involvement.” I haven't seen any involvement on this in Bangalore. We need deeper thinking, especially among the citizenry (rather…

There's a road very close to my home, which thousands of commuters use every day. As roads go by, it is nothing special--not extra wide or four-laned or nicely tarred, even. It's just a linking road, a few hundred metres in length. A redeveloped slum dominates one end of it; at the other are some indistinguishable homes, a few small businesses and the local Bescom office. Pedestrians invariably have a tough time navigating this road, especially the part that goes past the slum. For there is always traffic whizzing past, children playing about, running helter skelter unmindful of the vehicles…

Over the last few months, several jobs related to the rejuvenation of Allalasandra Lake have progressed. Yelahanka United Environment Association (YUVA), the association that has been working closely with the BBMP for this lake has had multiple meetings with Government officials and BWSSB for stoppage of sewage entering  the lake through storm water drains. The short term solution in place is a huge sand bund to stop sewage entering the lake. For the long term, BWSSB has agreed to provide a mini Sewage Treatment Plant for which the DPR work is going on. Pics courtesy Jagadeesh, YUVA The horticulture and pathway…

Take a walk around Narasipura 2 Lake in the late evening and you will not miss hearing the brilliant Narasipura Amphibian Harmonic Orchestra! Yes, with the recent rains, the frogs and toads are out and about. While the "Life Cycle of the Frog" is commonly taught in school, how many of us actually know beyond the spawn, the tadpole and its shrinking tail?     An important part of the food chain, frogs and toads are considered to be very good environmental indicators. This means that having frogs and toads in an area tells us that the environment is healthy for them,…

To celebrate Earth Day (that is observed all over the world on 22nd April), PNLIT is happy to host an event called Dance at Dusk in association with the Snehadhara Foundation. The programme is being held on a Saturday to enable adults to participate along with their children.  Date: 26th April 2014 (Saturday) Time: 5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Place: Puttenahalli Lake, at the gazebo     What is Dance at Dusk? Here's a brief note on the event from Snehadhara: Dance at Dusk We at Snehadhara believe that movements have inner meanings and purposes along with their outer expressive…

Are you a hands-on parent? Are you spending the holidays taking your child to summer camp activities--craft, art, sport, swimming, skating, etc.? Or are you the type who prefers spending time with him or her, creating make believe stories, doing finger painting sessions, building lego cities, together? And, do you ever wonder, how much 'parenting' is enough? And if you are doing too much 'parenting'? Well, I do. All the time. I worry that if my five-year-old spends all his free time with me (especially during these holidays), he and I will no longer enjoy each others' company. I believe…