HS council issues guidelines to curb students’ mobile use
Times of India | 18 July 2026
Kolkata: The Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education on Friday issued a notice to the heads of affiliated schools, asking them to restrict students from bringing mobile phones to classrooms.
The notice, signed by council president Mosiur Rahaman Sardar, stated, “Students may be advised not to bring or use mobile phones during school hours, including during classroom teaching, examinations, assemblies, and other academic activities, except under exceptional circumstances with the prior permission of the head of the institution.”
The notice also directed school heads to formulate procedures for the safe custody of such devices, as needed. It suggested that teachers counsel students on responsible use of digital devices. Scho-ols were asked to conduct regular awareness programmes for both students and parents on digital well-being, cyber safety and responsible use of gadgets.
School heads said the detailed instructions would allow them to regulate mobile phone usage on the school premises. Partha Pratim Baidya, headmaster of Jadavpur Vidyapith, said, “The notice will help us take necessary steps to regulate phone usage among students of classes 11 and 12. The council has for the first time issued such a detailed notice on the issue.”
The head of an HS school said that despite repeated warnings, some students continued to bring phones to school regularly. A few even take pictures and film reels in classrooms. “When I confronted a student after seeing a social media post, he asked why he couldn’t bring a cellphone to school if teachers were allowed to. I then asked teachers not to carry mobile phones to classrooms,” he said.
Another headmaster said, “I caught some class 10 students watching videos on mobile phones. They said their parents had given them the phones to get in touch with them after school hours.”
Officials at the HS council said that although there is a standing order prohibiting students from using mobile phones in schools, the situation changed in the post-Covid era. Students were given Rs. 10,000 to buy smartphones or tablets for educational purposes. But officials said that in most cases, the intended purpose was not served.