The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has cancelled the affiliation of Neerja Modi School in Jaipur, citing “gross violations” of student safety
norms after the death of a young student who allegedly died by suicide on the campus last month. The board said the school was liable for the “severest” penalty and that students could not be allowed to continue studying in what it described as an unsafe environment. The decision follows an inquiry into the death of a 9-year-old girl who was studying in Class 4 and allegedly jumped from the fourth floor of the school building on November 1. CBSE said an inquiry panel found multiple and serious lapses by the school, including repeated failures to respond to complaints of bullying raised by the child’s parents. According to the panel, the parents had first flagged the issue with teachers in July 2024, but no effective action was taken. The panel reported that on the day of the incident, the child approached her class teacher five times in the final 45 minutes of her life, seeking help. The teacher failed to intervene, the report said, despite clear signs of distress. CBSE said such negligence was unacceptable for an affiliated institution. Under the board’s order, the school’s affiliation up to the senior secondary level has been withdrawn with immediate effect. Students currently enrolled in Classes 10 and 12 will be permitted to continue at the same school and appear for board examinations in the 2025–26 academic session. The following are the gross violations noted by the committee: a) On CCTV surveillance: No proper CCTV surveillance on movement of students and preservation of recording/footage for at least 15 days; b) No safety measures in corridors and open areas: School had not installed the safety steel nets in open areas at upper floors as per the safety guidelines for classrooms and for other open spaces; c) No proper counselling system: School having no proper counselling system, counsellors not vigilant and children were never referred to the counsellor; d) No compliance on the guidelines and directions on child safety issued by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights; e) No anti-bullying committee and policy with reporting and action as per CBSE circulars and guidelines; f) Removal of evidences: the school had immediately cleaned the blood stained stairs and the area which should have been cordoned and kept intact for forensic analysis and investigation by the agencies; g) Staff including the teachers not wearing the Identity Cards: Most of the staff and the students also were found without Identity Cards; h) Absence of vigilant staff on the floors to restrict the movement of the students; i) No vigilant and dedicated staff to monitor the CCTV surveillance and movement of students; However, students in Classes 9 and 11 will be shifted to nearby schools for the 2026–27 session by the CBSE regional office. The school has also been barred from admitting new students or promoting students to Classes 9 and 11 through automatic progression. CBSE said the school may apply for restoration of affiliation up to the secondary level only after a lapse of one academic year, beginning with the 2027–28 session, and only after fully complying with mandatory safety norms and child protection protocols. Restoration up to the senior secondary level may be sought only after at least two academic years following such restoration, if granted. The board said it had issued a show-cause notice to the school last month, noting that repeated communications from the parents to teachers and the management went unheard. The inquiry panel found that complaints of bullying had been raised more than three times over 18 months, but the school’s anti-bullying committee neither contacted the parents nor intervened. The panel also reviewed CCTV footage, which showed the child repeatedly asking classmates to stop behavior that appeared to distress her and approaching the teacher multiple times for help. CBSE said the findings showed a troubling pattern of harassment and neglect, leading to the decision to cancel the school’s affiliation.
