Aliya Abreu
Day 1 of the new school year will be a day to remember. As children went back to school after a long summer’s break, there were some surprises and some same-old-back-to-school scenarios on Thursday.
The rain, for one, definitely came as a surprise, considering the forever-uncertain “forecast” (read: predictions) of the meteorological department. But parents were unperturbed by the rain. A parent Annette Riva Po, whose two children study at Sharada Mandir High School even said that the rain was a welcome relief from the heat. “I was really worried it would be too hot, and had prayed for some relief,” she said.
Another parent Bryan Gonsalves whose children go to Don Bosco High School, Panaji and Our Lady of Rosary High School, Dona Paula said that the rain may have played spoiler for some on the way to school as it came unexpectedly, and it didn’t rain, it poured.
Apart from the weather ups and downs, there was the never-gets-old “news” about the traffic jams, what with parents in the capital buying smarter and smarter cars, in a city that is far from becoming so, although empty promises have been pouring down on that front, heavier than the rains themselves. (And we don’t even need the meteorological department to forecast when the city’s finally gonna get “Smart.” Taylor Swift voice - never ever ever)
Said Bryan, “The traffic leading up to Our Lady of Rosary HS in Dona Paula was so bad that vehicles were lined up all the way to Caranzalem at 8am in the morning. There wasn’t a traffic cop in sight at either of the two schools.” But of course, the cops were posted in a grand show of strength at the school the city’s rich and famous go to. Another parent Maria, whose youngest daughter Rachel de Souza had her first ever day at nursery school at Lourdes Convent, Saligao, said that her daughter wasn’t disappointed and might even give it a shot again tomorrow. “We had prepped her for some time for her first day, telling her that even if she sees other children crying, she shouldn’t cry. And she didn’t. We told her we’d be waiting for her outside,” said Maria. Maria’s elder daughter Grace who goes to St Mary’s, Mapusa (Class 2) was all geared up to know in which division she’d be placed and who her new classmates would be. She was also pretty disapproving when her dad showed up on time to pick her up, telling him she needed more time to hang out with her friends.
There was also the exceptional case of the child simply refusing to go back to school, and the parents giving in, since it was a relatively easy day. Laxmi Parab said that her four year old son Aayush who goes to Ram Vidya Mandir in Colvale, was very cranky, so they let him off the hook, but that there would be no such leeway for him tomorrow.
And there was Tulsidas Chari whose son is in Class 1 in Don Bosco High School who said that as soon as his son saw the playground, he immediately wanted to play cricket with his Dad.
As June 6 turns to June 7, and then to July and the year wears on, going to school in the morning will become routine for both parents and children. But memories of the first day of school for most will always be cherished for years to come.
Schools re-open, some kids resume without uniform
vikram nayak
All the schools in port town re-opened after a long summer break on Thursday. It was a great sight to see many students wave out to their friends from their school bus windows on their way to school.
Many parents were seen dropping their wards to school and a lot of rush was seen in the early morning section on the F L Gomes road and Swatantra Path in Vasco with various schools in the vicinity. The traffic police were present at various junctions like St Andrews Church junction to regulate traffic movement and facilitate the movement of school buses and vehicles that were dropping the students to schools. Most of the schools had ensured the availability of all the text books with the exception of some who were to receive the text books in a few days time.
Though most of the schools saw students with new uniforms, some government school primary students had to begin the new academic year with old uniforms as the schools were yet to receive the new sets. When contacted, a source in the assistant district educational inspector (ADEI ) office confirmed that the new set of uniforms are yet to arrive. “The text books and it’s availability are being handled by Sarva Shisksha Abhiyaan departments and as per our knowledge the text books are made available to all schools. So far though there may have been reports of shortage of text books, no school has come forward with a complain. As far as the uniforms are concerned, we are yet to receive the new set of uniforms and we will revive it in a few days time. Only the primary section uniforms of some government schools are to be received and we will be giving it to the students soon,” said the source.
Meanwhile, Fr Gabriel Coutinho, parish priest of St Andrews church and administrator of St Andrews institute said that the school had made all arrangements of text books and uniforms in advance and that all went smooth on the first day of the new academic year.
