Opining about the poor response from schools to promote typewriting as a subject, Federation General Secretary Nandkishor Shukl said, ``Though the Gujarat Secondary Education Board has provided the option for students to take up typewriting as the sixth subject, apart from other subjects like drawing, singing and physical education, there are certain schools which discourage students from taking it up.''

The Federation, Shukl said, was not opposed to GSEB's plans to introduce computer eduction in place of typewriting and physical education. ``But as long as the GSEB does not scrap the options, the schools should encourage the students to take up typewriting,'' he added.

According to Shukl, there were certain city-based schools where had no facilities to train students in physical education. But students were forced to opt for the subject, he alleged. In other schools, he further alleged, there were no rooms where the students could be trained in singing, yet the schools encouraged the students to take up the subject.

``Though there are very few career options for students after s he completed a course in typewriting, it would definitely be helpful for those who wanted to take up careers like data processing,'' Shukl said.

The federation members also claimed that they had already identified a few schools which were threatening students not to take up typewriting. The members said that they would stage dharnas in front of these schools and force the authorities to re-consider their decision.