29 September, Srinagar: A year-long National Integration Migration Programme involving students from Navodaya Vidyalayas in Jammu and Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh took a surprising turn when students from NV Jhansi protested against their counterparts from NV Rajouri, prompting the early return of the J&K students after only two months.
The Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti created a scheme that allowed students to transfer from one Navodaya Vidyalaya to another that was located in a different linguistic area in order to foster awareness of India’s many cultures.
NV Jhansi, where 18 students from NV Rajouri had been living since August, saw an increase in tensions.
The same programme saw the transfer of 20 students from NV Jhansi to NV Rajouri.
According to the Indian Express, trouble started on Thursday night when students from NV Jhansi claimed that classmates who had been taken to NV Rajouri as punishment for an argument had been beaten there.
According to reports, neighbourhood students barricaded the dormitory where the NV Rajouri students were staying and demanded their immediate release. The NV Rajouri pupils were quickly moved to a staff room by school administration, averting any violent violence.
The decision to send the Kashmiri students back to Rajouri early on Friday was made after R. P. Tiwari, the principal of NV Jhansi, voiced worry about the situation.
At the same time, he got in touch with the headmaster of NV Rajouri and asked for the kids from NV Jhansi to come back. Under the supervision of NV Jhansi employees, the students were driven to Rajouri in private automobiles.
According to Indian Express, Principal Tiwari stated: “Under the arrangement, pupils are intended to spend a year at the host school. However, we have decided to end the programme halfway owing to the current circumstances and our worries for the students’ safety. Additionally, agreeing to send our pupils back is NV Rajouri’s principal.
As part of the “Migration of Students for National Integration” programme, the Class 9 students of NV Rajouri originally came to Jhansi in early August.
