The school authorities sprung into action and took several measures on Wednesday morning to ensure that a panic-like situation is not created following about 131 schools in Delhi-NCR receiving bomb threats via an email. While the threat letters were received by the schools as early as 4 am in the morning, parents were only informed later to pick up their wards from the school.
However, from not informing students about a threat, the school authorities buckled up and gave minute-by-minute updates to parents about their wards. Schools in Delhi-NCR also took several measures to ensure that there was no panic-like situation due to a hoax e-mail received by them. While many schools said they were able to carry out a swift evacuation of the students and staff, dealing with the panic stricken parents was a challenge.
In light of the event and being prepared for any uncertain future circumstances, some schools said they plan to issue a circular for parents, outlining the standard operating procedure to guide them on how to react in adverse situations like these. "We hold frequent evacuation drills to prepare students for situations like an earthquake or other natural calamities. So handling the students was not a problem as our children are trained on how to react during such situations. It was the parents who panicked and were difficult to manage," Sudha Acharya, principal, ITL Public School, said.
Acharya, who is also the head of the National Progressive Schools Conference, a body of 250 private schools under its umbrella, said the schools were quick in alerting police after receiving the bomb threat through an e-mail and buses were readied to drop students safely to their homes, while others were handed over to their parents waiting outside the school gate.
A special message was sent to the parents, assuring them that their children were safe and requesting them to stay calm. “Dear Parent, This is to inform you that due to a message received in the school we are evacuating the children early today in their respective school buses and vans. The parents who pick up their ward from the school should reach the school by 10.30 a.m. at the school gate,” read one such message sent to worried parents. Further, Acharya said, "We knew it was a hoax given the language of the e-mail and the unlikelihood of more than 100 schools receiving the same e-mail at the same time. However, we followed the standard operating procedure and evacuated the students and staff.
The e-mail was received by many schools on Tuesday itself but because of its shoddy language, it landed in their spam folder. We told the parents, many of whom are office-goers, to relax and that they can take their time to reach the school to pick up their wards. There was no need to worry as the students were safe with us."
Kamini Bhasin, principal of DPS-Noida, said carefully-drafted messages were sent to parents so that they do not panic and the teachers kept engaging with the students, particularly the younger ones, to keep them distracted and ensure that they do not get scared. "We did not inform the parents or students that there was a bomb threat. We simply told them that because of an emergency, students need to be sent back home and asked them to pick up their wards. Many parents were happy with our swift action and lauded us for the efficient management of the situation," Bhasin said.
Anita Khosla, principal of GD Goenka Public School in Dwarka, said they plan to issue a circular for the parents to guide them on how to react in such situations. Education Minister Atishi took to X (formerly Twitter) and requested the parents not to panic. "Some schools have received bomb threats this morning. Students have been evacuated and those premises are being searched by Delhi Police. So far nothing has been found in any of the schools. We are in constant touch with the Police and the schools," she wrote in a post.
"Would request parents and citizens not to panic. School authorities will be in touch with parents wherever needed," she added.
Following the hoax bomb threat, the Delhi government issued an advisory for schools, asking them to ensure that the e-mails received at their official e-mail addresses are checked timely. On April 16, the Delhi government issued the safety-and-security guidelines to be followed by schools while responding to a bomb-threat call during school hours.
