Parents of Orchids International School, Nagarabhavi, Bengaluru staged a protest in front of the school on Tuesday over a sudden, uninformed change in the board affiliation.

Parents protested stating that the school had duped them and collected lakhs of rupees as fees claiming to be affiliated with the CBSE Board.

“At the time of admissions, we were told that this school was affiliated to the CBSE board. We were willing to shell out an extra amount of money if it was the central board. When it is nearly exam time now, the school says that it is not a CBSE school but is affiliated to the state board. The lack of will from this government to crack a whip on this school for whom controversy is a best friend is appalling,” said a parent of a class 2 student.

 Parents identified the fraud when the school began issuing state syllabus books to primary and higher primary school students. They also alleged that the school had permission to operate only upto class 8 but were conducting classes for class 9 and 10 as well.

Meanwhile, the school in an official response pinned it on the state board. “In context to the situation at the Nagarbhavi branch, the parents are worried about taking the mandatory board exam being conducted by the Karnataka State Education department. This was a sudden mandate from the department, and we didn’t have enough time to inform the parents properly. However, our curriculum at Orchids The International School is well framed to ensure the students perform well in any given exam. While we are proposed to be a CBSE school in the future, we will have to follow the state board guidelines till we formally get the affiliation.  We understand the anxiety amongst the parents, and we are working towards resolving their queries and assure them about providing a cordial learning environment for the students.”

This is not the first of incidents of parents protesting involving the chain of schools. Previously, parents also protested a sudden change in campus at another branch.

PREVIOUS CONTROVERSIES

December 2022: A group of parents and parents’ association members staged a protest in front of Orchids International School at BTM Layout in Bengaluru over an uninformed change in campus for nursery students.

July 2022: Orchids KR Puram came under fire on social media after allegedly offering incentives to students who do not frequent the washroom to avoid a rush. Parents also alleged inadequate infrastructure at school.

January 2022: At Orchids The International School, BTM layout, the video of a Hindu student alleging that she was forced by her teacher to pray to Allah in class despite expressing her unwillingness went viral on social media, stoking controversy. 

Also read: Bengaluru: Parents fume over uninformed shift in campus for nursery kids