Daily Times

A bill limiting the weight of children’s school bags sailed through the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly on Tuesday. The bill was presented by Education Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Shahram Khan Tarakai in the assembly. Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl’s member Mahmood Bhatti opposed the bill. The bill titled Khyber Pakhtunkhwa School Bags Limitation of Weight Bill 2020 has set a different weight limit for each class in accordance with the nature of their time tables. According to the bill, the maximum school bag weight limit for first graders will be 2.4 kilogrammes (kg), 2.6 kg for second graders, and a maximum of 3 kg for third graders. Likewise, the permissible weight of school bag for Grade-4 is 4.4 kg, Grade-5, 5.3 kg; Grade-6, 5.4 kg; Grade-7, 5.8kg; Grade-8, 5.9kg; Grade-9, 6kg; Grade-10, 6.5kg; Grade-11, 7kg; and Grade-12, 7kg. The bill stated that action will be taken against principals of government institutions where children are found to be carrying school bags in excess of the prescribed weight. On the other hand, private schools found in violation of the bill will be penalised with fines up to Rs200,000. The provincial government introduced the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa School Bags Limitation of Weight Act 2020 in October this year. According to doctors, heavy school bags lead to strain, fatigue and physical discomfort among children and thus, affecting their attentiveness and ability to learn.