More than two decades after its founding, the Druk Padma Karpo School in Ladakh, popularly known as the “Rancho School”, may gain the long-awaited affiliation to the CBSE this year, as it has obtained permission from the Jammu and Kashmir board after a long delay.

In accordance with the Central Board for Secondary Education (CBSE) Affiliation Standards, schools require a “Certificate of No Objection” from the respective state board.

Foreign schools require a similar document from the relevant Indian Embassy or Consulate in the relevant country.

The school which rose to fame after appearing in Aamir Khan’s 2009 film ‘3 Idiots’, is currently affiliated with Jammu and Kashmir State Board of School Education (JKBOSE).

“We have been trying to affiliate our school with the CBSE for many years,” said school principal Mingur Agmo. PTI.

“Although we have all the required infrastructure in place, excellent results and focus on innovative teaching and learning methods, we have not obtained the NOC of JKBOSE despite several attempts during these years,” she said.

“Finally, the document has been received this month and we will complete the rest of the affiliation process soon. We hope that we will obtain affiliation this year and there will be no more obstacles,” said- she added.

The school tried to get permission before Ladakh gained union territory status.

Even after the bifurcation, schools in Ladakh continue to be affiliated with the Jammu and Kashmir council.

A committee had last year proposed the creation of a new territorial council in Ladakh with the aim of meeting the “realistic needs of students according to the natural conditions of the region”.

The 21-year-old school is named after Mipham Pema Karpo (1527-1592), who is revered as a great scholar, while Padma Karpo means ‘White Lotus’ in Bothi, the local language.

The wall of the school building was featured in the closing scene of the Bollywood film in which one of the characters, Chatur, tries to urinate but receives an electric shock as two children throw a light bulb connected with a thread from a first floor window. .

While the “iconic silly wall” – part of a building that was damaged in the 2010 flash floods – still remains on campus, the first floor, previously made of brick, has been replaced with typically used wooden structures. in Ladakh.

The school decided in 2018 to relocate the “Rancho Wall” to ensure students weren’t distracted by the influx of tourists.

Students there study Bothi, English and Hindi, as well as science, social studies, creative arts and sports, Agma said.

She said they also receive training in life and livelihood skills, teamwork, presentation skills, leadership and problem solving through formal and extracurricular activities.

“Currently, the students are on winter vacation and we have decided that this winter vacation will be a “no gadgets” vacation.

“Due to the pandemic we have started lessons via smartphones, although this continues to be a challenge as there is no internet stability in some of the hilly terrain so we have only given homework offline to students during the break,” she added.

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