Students at 'pro-people' schools opened by the Maoists during the insurgency no longer chant A for army or B for blast. Nor do they learn about military science as a subject. These schools have now switched to the government curriculum as the Maoists have come into mainstream politics, and the government has prohibited schools from operating without official permission.

The schools were opened to educate the children of Maoist leaders, the PLA and martyrs. They started by operating outside of the government's remit and soon adopted a different curriculum and teaching methods. Now, the schools teach regular government prescribed subjects and 'pro-people' subjects have been kept as optional subjects.

Martyr Basu Memorial Model School in Rukum has 111 students, a majority of whom are the children of those killed during the insurgency as well as those who are financially weak. The school only has students upto Class Four and doesn't have the resources to grow. Bal Krishna KC, the school's principal, says that adopting the official curriculum has allowed the school to avail itself of facilities from the state.

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