First ever Hindu state school in UK

London: Britain is going to start first ever Hindu state school. There was no Hindu state school, so far in the country.

The school will be built in Harrow, which is the largest concentration of Hindus in the UK.

The Hindu school was announced as part of more than $ one billion grants for new schools in Britain.

There are more than 6,000 state-funded England and Catholic state schools, 45 Jewish, five Islamic, two Sikh, one Greek Orthodox and one Seventh Day Adventist school.

The force behind the project is the I-Foundation, a group of British Hindu businessmen, working closely with the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON).

"In recent years, we have seen a slow but steady deterioration of cultural and spiritual values in the Hindu community.

In the 1960s and 1970s, when Hindu communities were establishing themselves in the UK, there was a concentration on material endeavour, and our values were not the prime focus," said Nitesh Gor, Director of the I-Foundation.

Like other state schools, it will teach the full national curriculum, but in an atmosphere where Hinduism is prominent for much of the day.

Every morning there will be an assembly with Hindu prayers.

The school will have a Hindu head teacher.

However, apprehensions had been raised that such a project could destabilise the local education landscape, as it would draw children away from other local state schools.