Abu Dhabi: As hundreds of kindergarten students get set to begin their first year in school next week, many families in Abu Dhabi are packing their bags to go home. Reason: they weren’t lucky to secure seats for their children in Indian schools.
Arif Zein, a civil engineer from Mumbai who is sending his wife and four-year-old daughter, Zainab to India, said: “I kept trying for contacts that could help me get an admission. I checked with schools every day to see if there was a chance. Finally I decided enough was enough. This year, my daughter will go to a school in India,” said Zein.
The man had brought his family from India six months ago. “I had applied in at least four schools but all of them are already full. It was heartbreaking for me to send them back,” Zein told XPRESS.
Bijesh Nair, is another parent considering sending his family back to Kerala as his son has failed to get a KG seat. “We had registered online at four schools — The Indian School, Bhavans, Sunrise and the Model school. But I am shocked that we did not get through in any of them,” said Nair who works as an accountant.
Nair’s son Nimesh will turn four in July and he wants to enroll him in KG this year. “There is no choice but to send my family back to India. By next April, he will be almost five and late for KG.”
All 30 Indian schools in Abu Dhabi have seen a mad scramble for seats in Kindergarten and Grade 1 in the last few years, especially after the government’s decision to close down villa schools. And despite announcements by investors only one new school will open this year. The Bright Riders School by Indian businessman B.R. Shetty, which will open next month has no seats left for KG and Grade 1 students.
Abu Dhabi Indian School, the oldest and biggest in the capital, had a staggering 1,500 registrations for 75 KG seats. More than 900 parents applied for a handful of seats which were up for grabs in Grade 1. Principal N.C Vijayachandra said the school had a lottery system to distribute seats. “Many secured admission, but many more were left out. And it is the same situation every year,” Vijayachandra told XPRESS.
The Model School Abu Dhabi could admit only 400 out of 2,300 applicants
Private International English School (Bhavans Abu Dhabi) said they received more than 1,000 registrations for 200 seats in KG. “We have requested authorities to allow a second shift so that we can accommodate another 75 or 100 students in KG,” said Principal Girija Baiju.
Rajendran Padmanabhan, Principal of Sunrise English Private School said they had to turn down admission requests as demand from siblings filled up the available 400 seats in KG.
