DPS Sharjah mourns the death of founding principal Abha Sehgal

Dubai - Well-loved educator Abha Sehgal served as principal of DPS Sharjah from 2000 to 2008.

Staff and former students of the Indian curriculum school Delhi Private School (DPS) Sharjah are mourning the death of their founding principal Abha Sehgal, who passed away on Wednesday, October 28.

Sehgal, a former UAE resident, had been unwell for over two years, said Dinesh Kothari, vice-chairman and managing director of DPS Sharjah and DPS Dubai. The well-known educator was the DPS Sharjah principal from 2000 to 2008.

“An educator for over 37 years, Sehgal must have retired in 2016. She had returned to the DPS Academy in 2014-15 to meet with parents and address the teachers,” said Kothari.

“She was an amazing individual. She was very humble and she understood her students and staff extremely well. About 60 per cent of the current DPS Sharjah senior leadership was formed by Mrs Abha.”

Sehgal began teaching in DPS RK Puran in New Delhi, India in 1980. In 2000, she moved to the UAE to take charge of DPS Sharjah and left for Sanskriti School in Chanakyapuri Delhi in 2008.

Though it has been years since she had left the Sharjah school, her former students could still clearly remember how she was as a teacher. Many of them have taken to social media to pay their tribute.

Garima Himthani, a former student, said: “The sight of her smiling face welcoming us every morning, as we arrived in buses with sleepy heads is something I will always remember.”

Siddanth Shodan wrote: “She was such a warm and generous lady. A great loss to the DPS family.”

Agam Agarwal said: “She was the pillar and role model for every student and teacher at DPS. My condolences to her family.”

Sehgal had clearly touched the lives of her students, Kothari added. “Whether here or in India, any student who had been taught by Mrs Abha would remember her as someone who played a key role in their formative years. I recently met a gentleman who had been her student in DPS RK Puram several years ago. He still remembers her fondly.”

The DPS Sharjah website shared condolence messages that read: “Our dearest Abha Ma’am, you will always be a handprint on our hearts. Your warmth, your inspiring words, and your inspiring words will still reach us across the miles.” She is survived by her husband, two children and grandchildren.

dhanusha@khlaeejtimes.com

• Sharjah