CBSE students to be dope-tested

To conform with international sports rules, the Central Board of Secondary Education has decided to conduct dope tests for students from classes 9 to 12 who participate in the inter-school sports event scheduled to start in September.

The circular by CBSE said: “To ensure that the CBSE Inter School Sports and Games Competitions are ‘dope free’, the board has also decided to introduce ‘Doping Test’ in association with the National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) from the session 2012 -13.”

Some of the schools support the move, while others want to consult parents. The list of banned substances will soon be displayed on CBSE’s website.

More accountability

“It is always better to take precautions at an early stage. The basic intention is to follow international norms as schools affiliated to the board outside the country also participate in these competitions. This will also bring more accountability to sports as this field should be taken seriously,” said a CBSE official.

However, the official did not divulge any details about the reason for this step. For the record, nearly 11 athletes tested positive in the National Schools Games in January.  The circular does not specify the test procedures to be used by NADA and whether the tests will be conducted for athletes alone or done on a random basis.

While some Delhi-based schools said they ensure that children do not use substances which require testing, others believe there is no harm in conducting such tests.  
“We are not aware of this circular as yet but the school will not come to the forefront till CBSE involves parents by taking their permission to test children,” said Ameeta Wattal, principal of Springdales School, Pusa Road.
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 and vice-chairman of the National Schools Progressive Alliance.
Children are protected in schools and conducting such tests inside school premises will not be appropriate till parents become a part of it,” said Ameeta Wattal, principal of Springdales School, Pusa Road and vice-chairman of the National Schools Progressive Alliance.

D K Bedi, principal of Apeejay School, Pitampura said: “There are two things. Personally I do not think that any child studying in a school will take such medicines. But there is no harm in spreading awareness about drug-based substances at the school level to ensure that children who are dreaming of becoming sports persons take competitions like Olympics, Commonwealth Games and others seriously.”

Cash awards

CBSE has also announced the introduction of cash awards for schools for overall performance. The first prize has a cash reward of Rs 5 lakh followed by Rs 3 lakh as second prize and Rs 1 lakh as third prize.

The organising school will be required to arrange for a team of doctors in its school premises who will perform age verification tests of the athletes selected on random basis or in cases of doubt. “The medical test of a girl needs to be done strictly by a lady doctor,” added the circular.