TEMPO.CO, Kathmandu - Thousands of children, many still traumatised from losing homes and loved ones, returned to class on Sunday (May 31) as Nepal's schools formally reopened following a devastating earthquake that claimed more than 8,600 lives.
In many cases children in uniform walked through rubble to attend lessons in temporary classrooms made of bamboo or in tents on playing fields, after their schools were destroyed or badly damaged in the quake that struck on April 25.
Eight-year-old Sahaj Shrestha clung to his father as they arrived together at the gates of the state-run Madan Smarak School in the Kathmandu valley.
Sahaj's mother Mina Shrestha said their son has been too terrified to leave their side, even to go to the toilet, since the quake destroyed their home and forced them to live in a tent.
"Aftershocks are still continuing. It is difficult not to be nervous about sending the children to school again," Shrestha told AFP. "But the teachers have assured us that it is safe here, and at least his mind will be fresh if he meets his friends and studies," she said.
Yubraj Adhikari, who is leading counselling initiatives by the International Committee of the Red Cross in quake-hit communities, said teachers must be alert to any behavioural changes.
"It is normal for children to act differently after such an experience, but we have to keep an eye out for any signs of long-term trauma in a child," he said.
The 7.8-magnitude quake damaged nearly 8,000 schools, while some 90 per cent of them are estimated to be have been destroyed in the worst-hit rural districts of Gorkha, Sindhupalchowk and Nuwakot.
BBC | CHANNEL NEWS ASIA | YON DEMA
