Karnataka Unaided School Managements’ Association (KUSMA) President G S Sharma welcomed the government’s proposal to start private schools at 8.30 am. In his school, the classes for kindergarten commence at 8 am and for high school from 8.30 am to 9 am. “We will have no problem in starting the school half an hour early. We will also request the parents to send their wards earlier. So far,” he added.

However, Associated Management of Schools in Karnataka General Secretary K S Krishna Iyer said by changing school timings, traffic problem will not be solved. “With most parents working these days, if a child returns home at 2.30 pm, who will take care of the child? Moreover, how will a teacher reach school as some of them stay in far-flung areas. They will have to leave an hour before to reach the school. The government should make some kind of arrangements for the teachers such as providing staff quarters near the schools,” he said.

Mr Iyer said that overall, there are seven lakh students in Bangalore. Of these, 3.7 lakh stay within one km from the school and commuting is not a problem for them. Around one lakh students stay within 3 km and  35,000 to 40,000 students stay anywhere between 10 and 30 kms.

These children go to elite schools which have more arrangements, he said, suggesting the department to make it convenient for the parents to drop their children.