Threat of retinal damage to children has forced private institutions to take a break today.
It is not superstition but plain concern for safety of children that has made most of private and government schools to declare holiday today — the solar eclipse day.
The duration of eclipse is long (from 11.16 am to 3.11 pm) and it coincides with the lunch hours. Hence, the school managements and parents don’t want to risk students suffering retinal damage by viewing the eclipse directly.
In fact, throughout the week, school managements were inundated with calls from worried parents requesting a holiday on the day.
According to Akash Ryall, principal, Bethany High School, most Anglo Indian Schools affiliated to the ICSE board have declared a holiday on January 15. All National Public Schools have also declared a holiday and will reopen on January18.
“We declared a holiday mainly because parents were concerned about sending their children to school during the eclipse,” Padma Viswanathan, principal, Venkat International School, said.
Avoiding untoward incidents during the eclipse remains the top priority of school managements. “We can’t provide each student with protective eye gear or ensure that no one looks at the sun directly. Children could unintentionally harm their eyes. So we decided to declare a holiday,” said M Srinivasan, Gear Innovative International School.
On the other hand, an official of the department of public instructions, the body in charge of government schools, said: “We have not issued any direction to the schools. They can avail of discretionary holidays. We haven’t made any special arrangements for students to view the eclipse.”
Meanwhile, students are also making plans for the holiday. Aishwarya Chandrashekar, a standard VIII student, said, “I will just read up about the eclipse because I’m interested to know more about this phenomenon. But I don’t have any other plans for the holiday.” “We got a holiday because of the solar eclipse. I will be mostly indoors, preparing for my upcoming final exams,” said Karan Pal Singh Grover, a student.
Experts are advising caution. “The eclipse can be viewed directly only when using filters specifically designed for this purpose. Such filters usually have a thin layer of aluminum, chromium or silver deposited on their surfaces that attenuates ultraviolet, visible, and infrared energy. One of the most widely available filters for safe viewing is a number 14 welder’s glass. Recently, aluminised mylar has become a popular, inexpensive alternative,” said Dr Arun Samprathi, pediatric ophthalmologist, Samprathi Eye Hospital and Squint Centre.
Watching the eclipse through X-ray sheets or sun glasses can prove dangerous as despite the protection solar radiation can still penetrate and reach the eyes resulting in burning of the retina, said Dr Bhujang Shetty, managing director, Narayana Nethralaya. Using the certified solar filters available for Rs25 is advisable. “With this solar filter, one can observe solar eclipse for a few minutes,” he added.
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