Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): With the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) recently issuing guidelines for schools to prevent incidents of stray dogs attacking children, schools affiliated to the board in Bhopal maintain that their students are safe as they are adequately protected on the premises.
There have been numerous incidents of stray dogs biting, and even mauling, children in the city over the past one year.
Concerned over the growing cases of stray dogs biting and attacking children, the CBSE had announced detailed guidelines for schools affiliated to it regarding the measures to be taken for “prevention of dog bite incidents and management of stray dogs in school premises”.
The guidelines state that all schools should designate a nodal officer responsible for the upkeep and cleanliness of the premises and to ensure that stray dogs do not enter or inhabit the school premises. It also urges schools to conduct awareness sessions for students and staff on how to behave when stray dogs are around.
“Ensure that the school premises are secured by adequate fencing, boundary walls and gates etc,” the guidelines state. It also asks the schools to identify vulnerable areas and ensure immediate “removal of stray dogs found within school premises which must be removed forthwith in coordination with the municipal authority, local elected bodies and district administration.”
CBSE schools in the city have claimed that their students are adequately protected. Chaitanya Saxena, president of Bhopal Sahoday, an organisation of CBSE schools, told the Free Press that almost all CBSE schools in the city have boundary walls and security guards to man the entry gates. “There is little possibility of stray dogs entering the schools,” said Saxena, who is also principal of LNCT World School.
Rajesh Sharma, principal of Ivy Global School, said that the CBSE mandates a six-foot high boundary around all schools affiliated to it. “Dogs or any stray animal can’t jump a six-foot wall,” he said.
According to Shailesh Zope, principal of Anand Vihar School, while the children are
safe inside the school premises, there is a possibility of stray dogs attacking them when they leave the premises to travel in public transport. “We are in regular touch with municipal authorities and whenever we find stray dogs around the school, we report it to them,” he said.
