Krishna-Avanti Primary School (KAPS)
Leicester, UK (CHAKRA) – It has been reported that the second Hindu State school will open in the UK in the city of Evington next September. The school in Leicester will be called Krishna-Avanti Primary School (KAPS) and will be a school free of any fees for the parents of the children. There are spaces for 420 students from the ages of 4 and 11 and the waiting list has already started to grow as well.
Aside from London, Leicester is the higest populated community of Hindus. The school will follow the national curriculum with an addition of morals and values taught based on Hindu philosophy. Teaching children Hindu culture and heritage is one of the purposes of the school.
The “I-Foundation” charity in London that started the first school in Edgware, Middlesex in 2008 is the same charity that has planned to start the Krishna Avanti school. The charity’s future plans is to open other primary and secondary schools across London with a similar purpose and objectives. The main purpose of these schools is to make children reaize the importance of realizing thier spiritual, moral, and academic potential in the midst of suppporting and loving the service of Lord Krishna. The board chairman is named Nitesh Gor who is a promoter of Hindu State schools.
Mrs. N. Parmar, the lead teacher of the already existing Hindu State school says that the school is one of the most eco-friendly schools in London which nurtures character, and rules that are in line with Vaishnava values. The school also has yoga classes and meditation classes for all its students and is a proud promotor of vegetarianism.
The president of the Universal Society of Hinduism, Rajan Zed, funding for the opening up of such schools should not be an issue considering the amount of economically well-off Hindus around the world. Such schools will not only enlighten Hindu children by teaching them the values and philosophies of Hinduism but they will also serve to give some knowledge to non-Hindus across the world. Hinduism is the third-largest and oldest religion of the world.
Such schools will prove to be useful to children of Hindu descent and can help to maintain the cutural values and Hindu virtues of children. Moreover, such schools will help to counter the misconceptions about Hinduism around the world–especially in the West. In turn Sanskrit–the oldest language in the world will be learned about and preserved.
By Karishma Patel
Leave a Reply