Insights

In a tragic but somber move, the Himachal Pradesh government is about to consolidate two of Dharamsala's most ancient schools—Government Senior Secondary School (GSSS) for Boys (established in 1926) and GSSS for Girls (established in 1932). Once gold standard institutions of learning in the hill station, these heritage schools are now suffering from dwindling enrollments, thus the state's first major step towards restructuring as part of its education reform agenda.

Underlying this decision is a harsh truth: students increasingly choose private schools over traditional government setups, making most old schools obsolete. "We need to rethink school education. It's time to renovate and rebuild for quality." This was declared bluntly by Education Minister Rohit Thakur after a review meeting with the Himachal Pradesh Board of School Education (HPBOSE).

The merger, officials say, is not just about cutting cost—this is a strategic move to update old models into new centers of excellence. With pooled resources, the state aims to revitalize public education through improved infrastructure, technology-facilitated classrooms, and most effective faculty deployment. The merger could be replicated by other low-enrollment schools across the state.

But the emotional price is impossible to pay. They've educated generations and are more than structures—memory-saturated halls of learning, growth, and tradition. While the merger will provide a close to one chapter of Dharamsala's educational history, officials promise the legacy will be continued both in spirit and approach.

This transformation, which might be disconcerting for some, is the new face of Indian education—where tradition meets convergence with change, and longing is weighed against inevitable change. Within the quiet classrooms of these aged schools, a new chapter is about to be written—one honoring the past but preparing for the future.

Imagine this: A 12-year-old viewing TikTok sees a disturbing "news" video announcing a celebrity's passing. They repost without thinking to their friends, only to discover later that it was entirely fabricated. This has occurred daily in schools and homes around the globe, and it's precisely why educators are rushing to instruct media literacy—not as an elective, but as important as reading and math.

A few nations are taking the lead. Finland, which is regularly referred to as the "media literacy capital of the world," doesn't teach it as an independent subject. Rather, children are taught how to scrutinize sources, identify bias, and approach information critically in all classes—be it history, science, or even physical education. The payoff? Finnish adolescents are the least likely to be fooled by online hoaxes. Meanwhile, in the U.S., states like New Jersey and Delaware now require media literacy education, but many teachers admit they’re underprepared. "I was never trained to teach this," one middle school educator confessed. "I’m learning alongside my students."

So, what does media literacy really look like in the classroom? Not so much fact-checking. Students learn to ask some fundamental questions: Who made this? What's their agenda? What's not in this story? They practice "lateral reading"—a detective-like habit of checking claims against many sources before believing (or sharing) them. They talk about the emotional manipulations behind viral content: Why is this post making me so mad? Is that the goal?

But here's the catch: Experts maintain it's too late to wait until middle school. Children as young as six are on the internet, soaking up (and disseminating) misinformation. "By fifth grade, many already have ingrained habits," says one researcher. The answer? Begin early, properly train teachers, and provide them with interactive tools—such as games that mimic fake news or lessons analyzing memes.

The stakes couldn’t be higher. In a world where AI deepfakes and conspiracy theories spread faster than facts, media literacy isn’t just about grades—it’s about safeguarding democracy, mental health, and even public safety. As one high schooler put it: "If we’re old enough to be online, we’re old enough to learn how not to be fooled.

To the surprise, Allahabad High Court issued notice to Vice Chancellor of Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Banaras Hindu University Vice Chancellor to file compliance affidavit or to personally appear in court on July 3. The above has been directed against the contempt petition of Dr. Sushil Kumar Dubey, a lecturer, who urged that the pending promotion had not been given as ordered by obvious court directions.

Dr. Dubey was recommended by the BHU Executive Council (EC) on June 4, 2021, moving up from the Assistant Professor (Stage 2) rank to Stage 3 but nearly three years later than that, and this action is still pending, with the petitioner having been compelled to approach the courts once again for justice.

Yesterday, January 7, the High Court had also rejected a writ petition in the case and directed that if the EC was reconstituted within reasonable time, it should decide on promotion of the petitioner within three months. Or, if the EC had not been constituted yet, the university should promote Dr. Dubey as per any further order of the EC.

Even though directed expressly by the court, till now, no initiative seems to have been made by the university's authorities. The lawyer of Dr. Dubey on Monday has asserted that to date, there has been no issuance of promotion orders by the Vice Chancellor.

The recent reprimand by the court is oriented more towards imposition of greater bureaucratic lethargy on institutions of learning. The judiciary also shows its strict insistence on accountability in imposing punctuality in the implementation of its orders.

With the July 3 deadline closing in, now all eyes are on BHU administration. The case not only highlights a single individual's lengthy wait for promotion but also highlights larger system lags that persist to haunt India's government universities.

In a shocking expose, Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) is reportedly conducting a surreptitious campaign—"Operation Sindoor"—with spoofed Indian mobile numbers to target Indian journalists, activists, and civilians. An investigative report by The Internal News reveals the advanced exploitation of telecommunication devices for cyber-espionage.

Deception at Dial Tone

The operation relies on social engineering—a technique of psychological manipulation to trick targets. Impersonators who are government officials, media recruiters, or emergency responders call targets with +91 Indian phone numbers, which are spoofed by ISI-backed agents.

These impersonators use techniques like:

• Fake job offers or interview calls to lure targets.
• Verification requests claiming to be from agencies or banks.
• False emergencies to instill panic and get information.

Strategic Motives at Play

Despite not making an official statement, analysts indicate the reasons could be:

• Gathering intelligence on civil society players.
• Disinformation operations.
• Recruitment of assets to influence across borders.
• The operation seems to replicate earlier efforts by Pakistani forces to penetrate Indian defense communities and hit Kashmiri journalists.

Security Agencies React

Indian security agencies have made internal warnings to citizens to:

• Establish identity of unknown callers, even with Indian numbers.
• Not give out sensitive information through unsolicited calls or messages.
• Report these incidents to local cybercrime units at once.

"Operation Sindoor" is the new face of espionage, where the war is not fought on borders but via phone connections and chat windows. With the simmering tensions between India and Pakistan, such secret operations highlight the importance of digital watchfulness and public consciousness.

As citizens inadvertently become unwitting victims of geopolitical schemes, it becomes important to remain vigilant, probe the unexpected, and report the suspicious. In the meantime, every ringing call might be nothing more than a ring—it could be a breach in disguise.

Following the India-Pakistan standoff, a number of Indian states closed schools in the border areas for security reasons. Schools will reopen on Monday, notified the Punjab government, with other districts choosing to keep schools closed in the state.

A number of other states had also made safety arrangements for students.

Punjab schools to reopen

Punjab School Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains Sunday announced that state schools, colleges, and universities would reopen on Monday. There would be normal classes and examination as per calendar.

"All schools, colleges, and universities in all Punjab districts will open tomorrow. Regular classes and examinations will be conducted as per the academic calendar. We are really proud of our brave armed forces," Bains tweeted on Sunday.

Schools in these Punjab districts shut down

Schools in Ferozepur district will remain shut, according to advisory accessed by HT.

All schools, colleges, and universities run by the government, private sector, and aided by the government in Punjab's Sangrur and Barnala districts will also be closed on May 12. Online classes can be held from home by teachers.

Principals in Bathinda have been asked to reschedule any exam planned for Monday.

Schools closed in border districts in Rajasthan

All government and private schools in Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Barmer, Bikaner, and Sri Ganganagar districts have been closed for precautionary purposes.

In Jaisalmer, schools will be closed until further notice, said the district administration. "All schools in Jaisalmer will be closed until further orders," confirmed District Collector Pratap Singh Nathawat, in a report submitted by The Indian Express.

No comment from the authorities on this as yet when this report was filed.

Schools go digital in Jammu and Kashmir

The schools and colleges in Jammu and Kashmir have remained closed since May 7, and the majority of private schools have gone digital. Government schools are yet to start online classes.

Education Minister Sakina Itoo posted on X that helplines have been established to help local students coming back home and students from other states who are presently in J&K. "All colleges and universities in the state are instructed to take care of students," she posted.

In Leh (Ladakh), schools have been shut for the same period of time by the district administration.

West Bengal's early summer holidays

Following chief minister Mamata Banerjee's appeal, a number of private schools in Kolkata and West Bengal have delayed summer vacations and closed from May 9.

According to The Indian Express, schools such as Ballygunge Siksha Sadan, Delhi Public School Ruby Park, and St. Xavier's Institution Panihati were closed for security reasons.

Delhi schools closed for Buddha Purnima

At the capital city, Delhi, school will be closed on May 12 for Buddha Purnima according to the holiday calendar by the Directorate of Education.

The Haryana government on Tuesday transferred 12 Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers and one Indian Forest Service (Ifos) officer on a large scale with immediate effect.

S Narayanan, a 1997 batch IFoS officer, has been given the appointment as director general and secretary, department of higher education in place of Rahul Hooda (IAS, 2015), who is Narayanan's successor as special secretary, Revenue and Disaster Management Department.

Narayanan was previously director general, New & Renewable Energy.

Some interesting postings in transfers list dated on Wednesday late night are T.L. Satyaprakash (2002-batch IAS) transport department secretary in lieu of Ashok Khemka who had superannuated on 30 April.

Satyaprakash will continue to hold the posts of Commissioner and Secretary, Mines & Geology Department and CEO, Drone Imaging and Information Systems of Haryana Ltd. (DRIISHYA).

C.G. Rajini Kanthan, a 2004 batch IAS officer, was made commissioner and secretary of department of human resource department relieving Vijayendra Kumar from the position. Kanthan will also continue to be secretary in the finance department, general administration department and central committee of examinations.

Shekhar Vidyarthi (IAS, batch of 2004) as director general, fire services, and commissioner, secretary, department of archives in lieu of Amneet P. Kumar are other significant postings.

Amna Tasneem (2012-batch IAS) changes from the post of administrator of the Panchkula-hq Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP) and Additional Director, Urban Estate (Panchkula) to foreign cooperation department director, in lieu of Sanjeev Verma.

Sachin Gupta (2018-batch IAS), previously district municipal commissioner and commissioner Ambala Municipal Corporation, replaces Tasneem in Panchkula-based postings.

Ayush Sinha (2018-batch IAS) moves from municipal commissioner's and commissioner of Yamunanagar Municipal Corporation to commissioner of Manesar municipal corporation.

Akhil Pilani, 2018 batch officer and erstwhile additional deputy commissioner-cum-district citizen resources information officer, Palwal, will replace Ayush Sinh.

Anand Kumar Sharma (IAS, 2019-batch) is serving as District Municipal Commissioner and Rohtak Municipal Corporation Commissioner from Additional Deputy Commissioner-cum-District Citizen Resources Information Officer and Mahendragarh Municipal Commissioner.

Saloni Sharma of the same batch, deputy commissioner-cum-district citizen resources information officer and district municipal commissioner Jhajjar, has been appointed as additional commissioner of the Faridabad municipal corporation.

Dr. Balpreet Singh, batch 2019, has been shifted from Gurugram municipal corporation as an additional commissioner to Ambala as district municipal commissioner and commissioner in place of Sachin Gupta.

Yash Jaluka (2021-batch IAS) additional deputy commissioner of Karnal has been appointed additional commissioner of the Gurugram municipal corporation in place of Singh