Murder in Ryan school: Parents raise memo with 13 demands; Principals assure action

Parents of students from Ryan International school staged a protest outside the three branches of the school at Noida, Greater Noida and Noida Extension. Parents started gathering outside the school premises since early morning, demanding to meet the principals of the three schools. They handed over a memo of 13 demands to the school authorities.

Irked by the murder of Class 2 student- Pradyuman- in Ryan International school in Bhondsi, Gurgaon, parents of other students protested outside three branches of the school- Noida, Greater Noida and Noida Extension. Seeking for better protection of their children inside school premises, parents met the principals of all the three schools. The concerned parents said that such incidents should not be repeated.

Amid security beefing, parents started gathering outside the school premises from 7:30 am after having sent their children for the half-yearly exams. They reportedly pressurised the school authorities to meet them. Having met the city Magistrate Mahendra Singh with their demands, the parents said, "We wanted reassurance from the principal on various safety accounts, like increased number of CCTV cameras, GPRS in buses and female attendants to accompany children to toilets, etc. However, the principal did not want to meet all of us at once and later met five parents who were assured that our demands will be met. However, we have not got anything in writing."

A memo raising 13 demands was handed over to the Principals, which included:

• Not allowing weapon/arms in school
• Women attendants to accompany all children below six years of age inside the toilet
• A woman guard outside the toilet lobby to stop unwanted people from entering toilet
• No access of support staff inside the toilet
• Attendants be present inside the school at least half an hour prior to school hours
• Police verification of all staff
• CCTV cover for the entire school area other than inside the toilet
• Camera and GPS system for school buses
• Formation of a parent representative team to supervise the school
• Fire extinguishers
• Access to enquire compliance with state government/CBSE norms guidelines
• Bus conductors checking the identity card of students before dropping him/her off
• Medical aid facility within the school premises

While all the three principals met a group of parents and assured them of action, the parents said that they will continue to follow up on their demands.