Of nearly 20 convent boarding schools located in three subdivisions of   Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong, at least half of the Anglo-Indian schools are said to be among the best in country. These schools have about 1,000 students on an average.

While Darjeeling has schools like St Josephs (North Point), St Paul’s, Mt Herman and Loreto Convent, Kalimpong is home to Dr Grahams Home, St Augustine and St Joseph. Geothals Memorial and St Helen’s are located at Kurseong.

“Due to political instability, we are losing out on international students as also those from Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata. Parents are thinking twice before sending their children here,” said Fr Kinley, principal of St Josephs (North Point), a prestigious boarding school in the Hills.

“There is a fear among parents about the situation in Darjeeling,” said Sajid Ahmed, a computer teacher at a convent school, adding they are now up against corporate schools in Silliguri and the plains. “A few like Little Flower at Kurseong, which had 200 students, mostly from Bangladesh, had to close down due to the crisis and competition.”

Although the authorities denied there is a mass exodus of students as yet, they say this is the third year in row that they are being affected by the political instability. They say although schools were exempted from bandhs, they feel the impact due to disruption in food supplies and transport. Many schools are also finding it hard to recruit teachers since not many are willing to move to the troubled region.

School authorities say they stay away from local politics but sometimes students are sucked into it by pro-Gorkhaland agitators. “Unless very necessary, we do not interact with the local political leadership,” said Fr Kinley.