The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Queueing up all night long for nursery admissions

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Jan 12, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Queueing up all night long for nursery admissions

Staff Reporter

— Photo: Bhagya Prakash K.

Ordeal: Parents waiting outside Sophia Nursery School on Friday for application forms which will be given out on Saturday morning in Bangalore.

BANGALORE: Hundreds of parents queued up on the road outside Sophia Nursery School on Palace Road on Friday for application forms for admission for their wards which would be issued on Saturday. “My father has been sitting here since 2.00 p.m. and now I have joined him. We want my son to study here because it is a good school and it is also located centrally,” said Sandhya Rao, who was waiting with her father Surendra Rao.

Neither the cold biting winds nor the discomfort of the seemingly endless wait on the uncomfortable footpath could dissuade these parents from their pursuit. Kinjal Mehta and G.S. Nandagopal, who had been waiting since 7 p.m., had packed food and clothing to brave it out all night long.

“It is worth it and we will do it for our daughters. We should be among the first five hundred to get an application,” said Mr. Mehta. There seemed to be some confusion over the number of seats in the coming academic year. While some parents said that there were only 200 seats of which only 50 seats were for boys, the guard, Narayan Swamy, denied that the number of applications were limited.

“They will choose only 300 children, but applications will be given out to everybody,” said the guard.

Though the queue largely comprised men, there were a few women accompanying the family members. Chandrashekhar B.G. held his tiny tot in his arms and said that he hoped that she would study there till Class 12. The later we try to get admission here the more difficult it is to get through, he said.

And then there were those who were there to cash in on what is an annual occurrence. Manjunath, who sold tea, said that he had been intimated by the guard who told him that people would be waiting all night long.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Karnataka