Load off their backs: Meghalaya puts cap on weight of school bags

  1. The Meghalaya government has put a cap on the weight of schoolbags for all classes. It has also restricted schools from assigning homework to students of classes I and II, except in subjects recommended by CBSE, ICSE or the state board.
  2. Meghalaya government’s orders are in line with the directives of the Ministry of Human Resources Development (MHRD). In 2018, the MHRD had directed states to formulate guidelines to rationalize class time-tables and regulate weight of school bags. This is because heavy school bags adversely affects a child’s health -damage muscles and nervous system.