With the slogan “No place for discrimination in the land of the July Revolution,” a total of 38 private and kindergarten educational institutions in Boalmari, Faridpur, organized a human chain and submitted a memorandum demanding inclusion of their students in the primary scholarship examination.
The demonstration took place on Wednesday noon in front of the Upazila Parishad, organized by the Boalmari Upazila Kindergarten Society. Around a thousand students, teachers, and directors from the 38 participating kindergarten and private institutions joined the human chain.
Following the protest, a memorandum was submitted to Boalmari Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Tanvir Hasan Chowdhury.
Speakers at the event included Kabir Ahmed Bablu, General Secretary of the Boalmari Upazila Kindergarten and Private Educational Institution Association; Advocate Korban Ali, founder of Barta Model Academy and editor of the Weekly Boalmari Barta; Principal Moloy Kumar Bose of S.A. Razzak Academy; Abul Hasan, director of HRS English Model Academy; Kamruzzaman Kamrul, director of Gunboha Pre-Cadet & Model High School; Sahebul Alam Mia, head teacher of Barta Model Academy; Swarajit Rajbongshi, teacher of G-K Kindergarten; and Jyotirmoy Pathak, head teacher of New Model Pre-Cadet School, among others.
In their speeches, the speakers emphasized, “A scholarship is not merely financial aid; it is a source of confidence, social recognition, and educational motivation for a child.” They warned that excluding private institution students from the opportunity to participate creates a sense of discrimination, which could have harmful psychological effects.
Such a practice contradicts the principle of equity enshrined in the national education policy. They stressed that appearing in the scholarship exam is a basic right of every child, and a dual system in one country is unacceptable.
The event saw participation from principals, teachers, board members, guardians, directors, and over a thousand students from 38 private and kindergarten institutions in the upazila.
