Holiday: boon or bane

Calcutta: The school calendar has a new holiday but the jury is out on whether the students needed one at a time when classes have just resumed after Diwali break.

La Martiniere for boys and girls, St. Xavier's Collegiate School, The Heritage School, Calcutta Girls' High School and Frank Anthony Public School are some of the schools that have declared a holiday for Chhath on Friday.

Most city schools reopened on Monday after Diwali and another holiday would mean one day less to complete the syllabus, especially in higher classes, a teacher said.

Earlier this month, the state government included Chhath puja as a general holiday for its employees instead of a sectional holiday. Until then, only employees hailing from Bihar and Jharkhand were entitled to leave on Chhath puja.

Several schools, however, decided to remain open on Friday to avoid disruption of schedule.