Many private schools in Bengaluru hike fees, despite govt order barring it

Education

Parents who spoke to TNM also confirmed that some schools have hiked the transportation charges for the whole year.

Alithea Stephanie Mounika

The Karnataka government had recently asked schools in the state not to hike their fees, despite this, a few schools in Bengaluru have been accused of hiking their fees. Parents also say that some schools are exerting pressure on them to pay the school fees immediately, even though it is uncertain when the schools will be able to function as normal again. They are demanding a hiked fee at a time of uncertainty when salaries and jobs are being cut. “We have no clue when the schools will reopen. We don't know when we will head back to work. Amidst all this, I received an intimation from the school regarding asking me to pay the fee. How can I pay the school fee when there are so many uncertainties? Besides hiking school fees, these schools have also hiked transport fees and expect us to pay without knowing when schools will start functioning for the academic year 2020-21,” says the petition to roll back the fee hike, which was started by a parent, Prashant Kamat. The petition has 4,216 signatures at the time of writing. Other parents who spoke to TNM also confirmed that some schools have hiked the transportation charges for the whole year, despite the uncertainty over when classes can resume. “These schools are also charging a hike in transportation fees even though practically no transportation is happening due to the lockdown that is in place,” said one parent. “We have appealed, and still the school has not responded to our queries.” A circular from the Department of Public instruction dated 28 April said that “private schools cannot hike their fees owing to COVID-19, but “are free to reduce their fees considering the economic scenario surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.” VIBGYOR, a popular private school in Bengaluru with several branches in the city, put out a circular in the app about payment of fees on April 5. The school has hiked the fee for most classes. For example, the fee for grade 3 in 2019-2021 was Rs 40,500 admission fee and an additional fee of Rs 1,09,200 to be paid in four instalments of Rs 27,300. This year, it has however been increased to Rs 43,800 admission fee and Rs 1,18,000 as additional fee. Schools in Karnataka are allowed to hike fees by 15% every year and VIBGYOR had hiked the fees before Karnataka came out with the April 28 notification putting a stop to this in this academic year. Parents allege that the school is not responding to queries about rolling back the fee hike. Instead, the school has been sending constant reminders about fee payments, they say. “We have been asked to pay the first instalment, no word on rollback,” a parent said. VIBGYOR’s spokesperson however called the allegation baseless. The spokesperson said, “ The allegation is false, baseless and untrue. The school is in compliance with the necessary guidelines issued by the concerned authorities in this regard.” This despite the parents having proof of the fee hike. One parent of a child studying in Global City International School, speaking on the condition of anonymity said that the school too has hiked fees as is normally allowed, but has not initiated a rollback after the April 28 circular. “Even though the notice was sent to the school, they have not responded. We have also raised the issue with the school but did not get any response,” a parent said. Parents of many other popular private schools in the city told TNM that the schools have hiked fees and are not willing to take it back. Jagadeesha, the Education Commissioner, speaking to TNM said that the concerned DDPI (Deputy Director of Public Instruction) is empowered to take action on such schools that do not abide by the government. “The school should be made aware of the circular, and if they still don’t comply, they can be taken into account by the DDPI, or parents can send a written complaint to the Commissioner of Education, and strict action will be taken.”

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Pandemic far from over: Experts warn Bengalureans as restrictions ease

Lockdown

As of Monday, several restrictions which were placed during lockdown were revised and people were allowed to go outside in Bengaluru.

Dr Nimeshika Jayachandran

Ravichandran N

Monday morning began with several Bengaluru residents lining up outside liquor shops and other establishments which had been shut down in view of the lockdown. People in the city have been allowed to travel in private transport between 7 am to 7 pm. However, even as certain aspects of life are staggering to normalcy, experts have warned that people must behave with caution to avoid further escalation of COVID-19 in the city. “The same measures which were advised during lockdown should continue to be practiced now. When going outside, people have to wear a mask and practice social distancing. Overcrowding of public spaces will only pose a risk of a sudden surge in cases,” explains Dr V Ravi, a senior neuro-virologist from National Institute of Mental Health Sciences (NIMHANS), who is a part of the core committee handling the coronavirus pandemic in Bengaluru. “Though many shops yesterday had mandated social distancing, there were several places where this was not followed. People must remain aware that we aren’t done with the pandemic just because some of the rules have been lifted,” he adds. Officials have also advised people to follow all the personal hygiene measures which have been in place during lockdown and have stated that people stay home unless absolutely necessary. Experts have also stated that masks or face covers should be used when going outside and should not be removed while outdoors, especially when speaking to others. “Elderly people, young children, pregnant women and other such vulnerable individuals especially need to take some precautions to ensure that they don’t fall sick. If anyone does fall sick, they should isolate themselves at home and not go out. If they find that they are not improving then they should visit a hospital as per the protocols,” adds Dr Nagaraj, director of the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases in Bengaluru. “We saw many public spaces being overcrowded with individuals as some rules were eased on Monday, this is really alarming and can possibly give way for further spread of the infection to other individuals,” he says, drawing attention to what transpired in Singapore. At the start of the pandemic, Singapore was praised for its quick handling of cases. Officials in the city had aggressively identified and isolated individuals who were found to be positive. Contact tracing was also extensively done. All this ensured that hardly 600 cases were reported throughout the beginning of April. However, though clusters were quickly identified and contained, schools remained open and the economy was also functioning. This led to a surge of cases being reported, with Singapore confirming over 17,000 positive cases by the end of April. A strict lockdown has been since imposed in the country. Moreover, with India set to bring back citizens stuck outside of the country from May 7 onwards, and the lockdown regulations being lifted, experts are stressing the importance of following strict precautionary measures. Citizens stranded abroad will be brought back via aircraft and naval ships in a “phased manner”. Bengaluru is expected to see a big influx of people from abroad. Read: India to start bringing back citizens stranded abroad from May 7 “We aren’t out of the threat of the pandemic quite yet. The decision to lift lockdown in some areas has been taken after much consideration. In order to make sure that case load remains low, people should maintain the same level of vigilance. Stay home and stay safe, don’t go out unless absolutely necessary,” adds Dr Nagaraj.

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Remembering ‘Nityotsava Kavi’ Nissar Ahmed, one of Kannada literature’s foremost poets

Obituary

The poet, who passed away last Sunday in Bengaluru, won numerous awards including the Padma Shri in 2008.

Vinay Kumar V

YouTube: ChukkuBukku Bandi

In 1968 poet Nissar Ahmed wrote the poem ‘Nityotsava’ for Akashvani (All India Radio) that earned him the title ‘Nityotsava Kavi’. The poem is an ode to a mother, mother Karnataka, or Kannada, and the song was popularised by Mysore Ananthaswamy, who sung it in Revathi raga. In an interview, the poet said that he didn’t want to be remembered for just ‘Nityotsava’. At an event in California, he was told once you’ve written something, a tune has been set and it is sung, then it’s the property of the land (Nadu) and people, and he responded with “Namo Namaha”. ‘Nityotsava’ is sung as an inaugural song at Dravidian University Kuppam in the four languages taught – Kannada, Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam, each stanza translated. A poet was born Kokkare Hosahalli Shekh Haider Nissar Ahmed, who went by KS Nissar Ahmed, was born on February 5, 1936 in Devanahalli, Bengaluru rural. He earned a Master’s degree in Geology, worked as an Assistant Geologist in The Mysore Mines initially till that bored him. He then took up academia and worked as a lecturer in Geology in Bangalore, Chitradurga and Shivamogga from where he retired. It was at the Kavi Sammelana held on September 21 (Vijayadashami), 1959, presided over by Rashtrakavi Kuvempu at Mysuru, that Nissar Ahmed was first recognised by Kuvempu paving the way for a glorious and illustrious carrier in poetry. Nissar Ahmed was conferred numerous awards: The Karnataka Sahitya Akademi Award for Poetry (1982), Rajyotsava Award (1981), Nadoja Award (2003), Padma Shri (2008), Pampa Award (2017), and an honorary doctorate from Kuvempu University. He was also the 73rd President for the Kannada Sahitya Sammelana held at Shivamogga in 2007. When the poet inaugurated the 407th edition of the Mysuru Dasara, he was asked how he felt about being bestowed an honour that has always been a Hindu’s. Annoyed, he replied, “This question is irrelevant. I feel nice. Only when you understand another religion, you really understand your own religion. Unless you have respect and sympathy for other religions, you will not be able to like your own religion. Anyway, such questions are politically motivated.” Nissar Ahmed translated Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice, King Lear and A Midsummer Night’s Dream into Kannada. In 1963, he wrote the poem ‘Kurigalu Saar Kurigalu’ based on the Indo-China War of 1962. On the radio he had heard, “‘Why would the Chinese come from Piking through the Himalayas? Not a blade of grass grows here.’ But by then, they’d already reached Tezpur”. His satirical poem was a witty commentary and reaction to the government’s inability in anticipating attacks, reacting to war, and communicating with its people/public. ಕುರಿಗಳು ಸಾರ್ ಕುರಿಗಳು - ಕೆ.ಎಸ್. ನಿಸಾರ್ ಅಹಮದ್ ಕುರಿಗಳು ಸಾರ್ ಕುರಿಗಳು; ಸಾಗಿದ್ದೇ ಗುರಿಗಳು. ಮಂದೆಯಲಿ ಒಂದಾಗಿ, ಸ್ವಂತತೆಯೆ ಬಂದಾಗಿ ಇದರ ಬಾಲ ಅದು ಮತ್ತೆ ಅದರ ಬಾಲ ಇದು ಮೂಸಿ ದನಿ ಕುಗ್ಗಿಸಿ, ತಲೆ ತಗ್ಗಿಸಿ ಹುಡುಕಿ ಹುಲ್ಲು ಕಡ್ಡಿ ಮೇವು, ಅಂಡಲೆಯುವ ನಾವು ನೀವು - ಕುರಿಗಳು ಸಾರ್ ಕುರಿಗಳು; ನಮಗೊ ನೂರು ಗುರಿಗಳು. Just Sheep They’re all just sheep; Walking towards an end To be the leading one, to be one’s own Sniffing each other’s tails heads and voices lowered we who’re undercover looking for grass and twigs are Sheep, just sheep; And we have a hundred aims. Poetry of the world Nissar Ahmed was a member of various academic, scientific and cultural committees/boards, organised conferences. His numerous poems and short stories were published in books and magazines and featured in school and college textbooks. When he taught at City College, he always ended the class by summarising the lesson in Kannada. His works belonged to Navya Sahitya, a style of modern Kannada literature that seeks to express a newer sensibility. He said, “If people can’t understand my poetry, I have no right to publish it. I’ll just burn it.” In an interview, he elaborated on the circumstances that made him write the poem ‘Nimmodaniddu Nimmanthagade’. “In the 1960s, there was a sort of unhealthy competition among my contemporary writers, my colleagues, laced with a streak of casteism… If I wrote poetry that was easily understood by people, then you became a potboiler, and it pained me a lot. They would suspect about one’s caste and religion, and with a lot of pain, I wrote ‘Nimmodaniddu Nimmanthagade’.” (sic) He also wrote the poem ‘Benne Kadda Namma Krishna’, a popular song in praise of the god Krishna. The credit of the first recorded format of poetry in Kannada released outside the country goes to Nissar Ahmed. He initially tried to make the recordings himself, later IBH in Mumbai stepped in to buy and sell. Now it is sold and released by Lahari Audios. His poems range in topic and theme from musical, lyrical, nature-loving to witty and satirical. His poem ‘America, America’ called out America for its superiority complex and for destroying nations (Vietnam then, North Korea now) to maintain that superiority. It also hints at America’s effort to demonise Russia and China for their politics. His other works of poetry include ‘Manasu Gandhi Bazaru’, ‘Sanje Aidara Male’ and ‘Manadondige Mathukathe’. Last days Nissar Ahmed was diagnosed with cancer and was in the US with his daughters. In January, TOI reported that BBMP had decided to provide Rs 20 lakh medical assistance to the poet, after it was learnt that he and his son Naveed had been diagnosed with cancer, and the family was finding it difficult to meet the treatment expenses. Talking about the life he had lived so far, the poet said in an interview, “Although I feel a little weak physically, I’m alive in my thinking, and that is because I have lived a clean life. I have never nurtured any hatred towards anybody, nor do I think about anybody’s religious identity. For me, humanity is more important than one’s caste or religion.” Nissar Ahmed’s wife, Shanawaz Begum, was a school teacher and passed away earlier in 2019. The couple had two daughters and two sons. His son Naveed’s passing away earlier this year shook him. The poet died on Sunday in his Padmanabha Nagar house in Bengaluru. Vinay Kumar is a Bengaluru based freelance photographer and writer who drinks too much coffee.

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K’taka govt plans health survey for all residents, begins pilot in Chikkaballapura

Coronavirus

The state government, however, has not issued an order demarcating the specifications of the survey.

Theja Ram

The Karnataka government is mulling over maintaining a health-related database of all its residents. In a statement released on Monday, Karnataka Minister for Medical Education, Dr K Sudhakar, said that the Health Register would be maintained to keep a check on all the health issues that its residents face.  The survey will be piloted in Chikkaballapura, the constituency of Dr K Sudhakar. Minister Sudhakar held a meeting with officials attached with the Chikkaballapur Deputy Commissioner's office. However, the district administration did not clarify the parameters of the survey.  According to Chikkaballapura district officials, the survey has already begun in Gauribidanur taluk. “We went door to door in all 31 wards. We asked people about their health-related ailments. We wanted to see how many senior citizens, children and patients with high-risk categories are there. When we found any symptoms, we took swab samples,” a senior official with the district administration said.  He said that the survey was being conducted to determine whether there is community spread. So far, he says that they found no such evidence in Gauribidanur. The survey will now be conducted in Chikkaballapura taluk. TNM was not able to procure a copy of the questionnaire at the time of writing.  After the meeting, Minster Sudhakar announced that officials at various primary health centres, the Revenue Department, the Education Department and Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA) workers would conduct a survey of the health-related ailments of its residents.  The state government claimed that the data collected would be used to implement “citizen-centric schemes,” though further details were not immediately available.  This comes in the wake of the Union government making it mandatory for employees of the public and private sector to download the Arogya Setu app. Allegations of invasion of an individual's right to privacy have risen.  Speaking to TNM, Vinay Sreenivasa, a lawyer with Alternative Law Forum, said that unless the government issues an order regarding the specification of the survey, we cannot determine what laws it can violate.  “They will have to give specifics about what kind of personal information people are to be asked. The government cannot begin a survey without giving specifics and issuing a government order. That would be a violation of norms,” he said.

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Over Rs 2 lakh collected as fine in Bengaluru for not wearing masks in public

Coronavirus

A fine of Rs 200 is imposed on those (in municipal areas) who are not wearing a mask in public

TNM Staff

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has so far collected Rs 2,39, 505 lakh as fines from residents for not wearing a mask in public places. This comes after the recent circular, issued by the BBMP on Thursday, charging a fine of Rs 1,000 for those who are not wearing a mask in a public place. The fine is Rs 2,000 for repeat offenders. However, following criticisms, BBMP revised the fine to Rs 200 in municipal areas and Rs 100 in other areas, the Times of India reported. On the first day, the BBMP collected a fine of Rs 51,700. On Sunday, the BBMP collected Rs 98,350 while on Monday, it collected Rs 89,455 as fines from residents violating the rule, The Hindu reported. The highest number of fines were levied in the city's east zone where Rs 21,305 was collected in fines from 55 persons. Rs 16,200 was collected from Bommanahalli zone and Rs 15,000 was collected from Mahadevapura zone. An amount of Rs 14,800 was collected in the west zone and Rs 10,000 from the Dasarahalli zone. On Monday, restrictions of the lockdown were eased to allow movement of people between 7 am and 7 pm in the city, including those without an exemption pass. Police officials patrolled the city, particularly keeping an eye on liquor stores where hundreds of people queued up.  Physical distancing norms were not strictly followed in these locations. A partial lockdown was enforced in Karnataka on March 13 when pubs, malls and educational institutions in the state were closed down. Since then, lockdown regulations were increased in the state until Monday, when restrictions were eased for the first time in over a month. Barricades placed in various areas across the city were kept in place on Monday and the speed of vehicles moving in the city was restricted to 30 km/hour. Bengaluru Urban is a red zone in Karnataka. The state is currently reporting 657 cases, including 150 cases in Bengaluru, the highest among the districts in the state. 

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How a 96-hour project helped Trump's team reverse its testing debacle

Public-private partnership sees some results, but can it produce enough Covid-19 tests to reopen the country?

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Remembering ‘Nityotsava Kavi’ Nissar Ahmed, one of Kannada literature’s foremost poets

Obituary

The poet, who passed away last Sunday in Bengaluru, won numerous awards including the Padma Shri in 2008.

Vinay Kumar V

YouTube: ChukkuBukku Bandi

In 1968 poet Nissar Ahmed wrote the poem ‘Nityotsava’ for Akashvani (All India Radio) that earned him the title ‘Nityotsava Kavi’. The poem is an ode to a mother, mother Karnataka, or Kannada, and the song was popularised by Mysore Ananthaswamy, who sung it in Revathi raga. In an interview, the poet said that he didn’t want to be remembered for just ‘Nityotsava’. At an event in California, he was told once you’ve written something, a tune has been set and it is sung, then it’s the property of the land (Nadu) and people, and he responded with “Namo Namaha”. ‘Nityotsava’ is sung as an inaugural song at Dravidian University Kuppam in the four languages taught – Kannada, Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam, each stanza translated. A poet was born Kokkare Hosahalli Shekh Haider Nissar Ahmed, who went by KS Nissar Ahmed, was born on February 5, 1936 in Devanahalli, Bengaluru rural. He earned a Master’s degree in Geology, worked as an Assistant Geologist in The Mysore Mines initially till that bored him. He then took up academia and worked as a lecturer in Geology in Bangalore, Chitradurga and Shivamogga from where he retired. It was at the Kavi Sammelana held on September 21 (Vijayadashami), 1959, presided over by Rashtrakavi Kuvempu at Mysuru, that Nissar Ahmed was first recognised by Kuvempu paving the way for a glorious and illustrious carrier in poetry. Nissar Ahmed was conferred numerous awards: The Karnataka Sahitya Akademi Award for Poetry (1982), Rajyotsava Award (1981), Nadoja Award (2003), Padma Shri (2008), Pampa Award (2017), and an honorary doctorate from Kuvempu University. He was also the 73rd President for the Kannada Sahitya Sammelana held at Shivamogga in 2007. When the poet inaugurated the 407th edition of the Mysuru Dasara, he was asked how he felt about being bestowed an honour that has always been a Hindu’s. Annoyed, he replied, “This question is irrelevant. I feel nice. Only when you understand another religion, you really understand your own religion. Unless you have respect and sympathy for other religions, you will not be able to like your own religion. Anyway, such questions are politically motivated.” Nissar Ahmed translated Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice, King Lear and A Midsummer Night’s Dream into Kannada. In 1963, he wrote the poem ‘Kurigalu Saar Kurigalu’ based on the Indo-China War of 1962. On the radio he had heard, “‘Why would the Chinese come from Piking through the Himalayas? Not a blade of grass grows here.’ But by then, they’d already reached Tezpur”. His satirical poem was a witty commentary and reaction to the government’s inability in anticipating attacks, reacting to war, and communicating with its people/public. ಕುರಿಗಳು ಸಾರ್ ಕುರಿಗಳು - ಕೆ.ಎಸ್. ನಿಸಾರ್ ಅಹಮದ್ ಕುರಿಗಳು ಸಾರ್ ಕುರಿಗಳು; ಸಾಗಿದ್ದೇ ಗುರಿಗಳು. ಮಂದೆಯಲಿ ಒಂದಾಗಿ, ಸ್ವಂತತೆಯೆ ಬಂದಾಗಿ ಇದರ ಬಾಲ ಅದು ಮತ್ತೆ ಅದರ ಬಾಲ ಇದು ಮೂಸಿ ದನಿ ಕುಗ್ಗಿಸಿ, ತಲೆ ತಗ್ಗಿಸಿ ಹುಡುಕಿ ಹುಲ್ಲು ಕಡ್ಡಿ ಮೇವು, ಅಂಡಲೆಯುವ ನಾವು ನೀವು - ಕುರಿಗಳು ಸಾರ್ ಕುರಿಗಳು; ನಮಗೊ ನೂರು ಗುರಿಗಳು. Just Sheep They’re all just sheep; Walking towards an end To be the leading one, to be one’s own Sniffing each other’s tails heads and voices lowered we who’re undercover looking for grass and twigs are Sheep, just sheep; And we have a hundred aims. Poetry of the world Nissar Ahmed was a member of various academic, scientific and cultural committees/boards, organised conferences. His numerous poems and short stories were published in books and magazines and featured in school and college textbooks. When he taught at City College, he always ended the class by summarising the lesson in Kannada. His works belonged to Navya Sahitya, a style of modern Kannada literature that seeks to express a newer sensibility. He said, “If people can’t understand my poetry, I have no right to publish it. I’ll just burn it.” In an interview, he elaborated on the circumstances that made him write the poem ‘Nimmodaniddu Nimmanthagade’. “In the 1960s, there was a sort of unhealthy competition among my contemporary writers, my colleagues, laced with a streak of casteism… If I wrote poetry that was easily understood by people, then you became a potboiler, and it pained me a lot. They would suspect about one’s caste and religion, and with a lot of pain, I wrote ‘Nimmodaniddu Nimmanthagade’.” (sic) He also wrote the poem ‘Benne Kadda Namma Krishna’, a popular song in praise of the god Krishna. The credit of the first recorded format of poetry in Kannada released outside the country goes to Nissar Ahmed. He initially tried to make the recordings himself, later IBH in Mumbai stepped in to buy and sell. Now it is sold and released by Lahari Audios. His poems range in topic and theme from musical, lyrical, nature-loving to witty and satirical. His poem ‘America, America’ called out America for its superiority complex and for destroying nations (Vietnam then, North Korea now) to maintain that superiority. It also hints at America’s effort to demonise Russia and China for their politics. His other works of poetry include ‘Manasu Gandhi Bazaru’, ‘Sanje Aidara Male’ and ‘Manadondige Mathukathe’. Last days Nissar Ahmed was diagnosed with cancer and was in the US with his daughters. In January, TOI reported that BBMP had decided to provide Rs 20 lakh medical assistance to the poet, after it was learnt that he and his son Naveed had been diagnosed with cancer, and the family was finding it difficult to meet the treatment expenses. Talking about the life he had lived so far, the poet said in an interview, “Although I feel a little weak physically, I’m alive in my thinking, and that is because I have lived a clean life. I have never nurtured any hatred towards anybody, nor do I think about anybody’s religious identity. For me, humanity is more important than one’s caste or religion.” Nissar Ahmed’s wife, Shanawaz Begum, was a school teacher and passed away earlier in 2019. The couple had two daughters and two sons. His son Naveed’s passing away earlier this year shook him. The poet died on Sunday in his Padmanabha Nagar house in Bengaluru. Vinay Kumar is a Bengaluru based freelance photographer and writer who drinks too much coffee.

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