Mumbai: A month after being declared unauthorised by the education department, Orchids International School in Sion has resumed physical classes under a new name—The Institute of Learning and Education—leaving more than 400 students caught in a legal and bureaucratic tussle between the school management and govt.While the management had earlier assured parents that physical classes would resume by July 1 after approvals were secured, the campus has instead reopened under the banner of what parents say is a “learning centre” or coaching institute. Students are attending classes without school uniforms and are going to be issued fresh identity cards carrying the new name.A parent told TOI: “I am desperate and don’t know what to do. The academic year has already begun and changing schools now is nearly impossible. My biggest worry is examinations. A coaching centre cannot conduct recognised school examinations. My child’s academic year should not be wasted.”The school, which caters to students from nursery to Class 10, had been declared unauthorised after the education inspector (north) pasted a notice outside the campus in June stating that it had no mandatory occupation certificate (OC) and govt recognition and urged parents not to enrol their children in it. Under Section 18 of Right to Education Act, 2009, schools cannot operate without recognition and are liable to an initial penalty of Rs 1 lakh, followed by a daily fine of Rs 10,000 if they continue functioning.Deputy director of education (Mumbai zone) Rajesh Kankal said the school’s proposal for recognition is progressing through the approval process. “The documents for the school’s recognition have been passed along further,” he said. After the notice had triggered alarm among parents just days before the start of the academic session, he had said the school had managed to secure an OC in the interim.Kankal, however, refused to comment on whether the institution can conduct regular school classes while recognition remains pending.Rahul Gharte, the school’s operations manager, maintained that the institution is in the final stages of obtaining approvals. “We are waiting for the final approvals from the state and are in the very last stage,” he said. Despite multiple attempts from TOI, there was no response from Gharte on the legality of the management’s new move.The school had earlier claimed that changes in recognition norms required it to first obtain a no-objection certificate from the fire department, undertake structural modifications to the building and then secure the OC before reapplying for recognition.
