Do You Have Any Ideas on How to make School Bags Lighter? Then Tell the Government!

The Department of State Education Research and Training (DSERT) has taken a step towards reducing the weight of school bags carried by children, and they need our help to come up with solutions.

We often hear parents and doctors talking about the ill effects of heavy school bags which seem to be getting heavier with each passing day. However, the Department of State Education Research and Training (DSERT) has now taken a stand to reduce the burden on kids who feel bogged down because of the heavy load they have to carry every day to school, in Karnataka.

DSERT has therefore invited the public to get involved and pitch in ideas to reduce the weight of school bags, so that a solution can be reached in the most efficient manner.

Credits – Flickr

In three weeks, DSERT has received only two responses. It is not a secret that this matter affects almost every parent whose child goes to school. Some children have to cover long distances on foot carrying their bags. Thus it is only fair that we work together in order to reduce this load.

 “We’ll hold meetings with NGOs and schools across the city and look at what the exact problem is. We are thinking of conducting a survey and randomly weighing kids’ school bags to get a sense of how heavy they are.” – S Jayakumar, Director, DSERT as quoted in The Times of India

In an effort to make school bags lighter, the government has decided to make 10% of the body weight of the student as the maximum load that a child is allowed to carry. A government resolution regarding this matter was issued on Tuesday. The commissioner for public instruction will receive recommendations from the DSERT, on the basis of the results of these surveys.

“In an earlier government resolution (GR) to reduce the weight of school bags, there was no clarity on what the maximum weight should be due to which it was difficult to judge if it was being implemented. Hence, despite two GRs, there were several complaints about the weights” – Nand Kumar, School Education Secretary as quoted in the resolution

Credits – Wikimedia

DSERT has asked parents to prioritize the health of their children over the number of books needed to be carried to school. Parents have also been advised to send children to school with only the essential number of books for the day. As of now, the prescribed weight for school bags is 1,800 gms to 3,425 gms, for children from classes I to VIII.

This is a healthy initiative and we must send in our suggestions, ideas and opinions for the solutions to be most effective. The suggestions can be sent to evg.dsert-ka@nic.in. You can find more information here.

Featured Image Credit: Flickr

Like this story? Or have something to share? Write to us: contact@thebetterindia.com, or connect with us on Facebook and Twitter (@thebetterindia).