Kashmir school education dept asks schools to decrease weight of school bags

The Kashmir Education Department has requested that schools reduce the weight of school backpacks.

Kashmir School Education Department said on Wednesday that heavy school bags are a serious threat to the health and well-being of the students while directing the heads of education institutions across Kashmir to decrease the weight of the bags.

The department had stated, “Heavy school bags are a serious threat to the health and well-being of students. The heavy school bag has severe/adverse physical effects on growing children which can cause damage to their vertebral column and knees.”

The Kashmir School Education Department further directed the heads of schools in the Kashmir Division, both government and private, to strictly follow the revised guidelines of School Bag Policy, 2022.

The policy had been released by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) to decrease the weight of school bags for students in primary, secondary, and senior secondary schools.

School teachers were further directed by the department to inform students about the books and notebooks to be brought to school on a particular day in advance.

The department also directed them to check the students’ bags frequently to ensure that they are not carrying unnecessary material.

According to the School Bag Policy 2022 the weight of the school bags should be as follows,