Officials say more than 300 teachers and students have died in the seven-year uprising as schools emerge as de facto symbols of government authority in a kingdom where troops and guerrillas tussle for control.

Lava Prasad Tripathy, spokesman for the education and culture ministry, said 149 teachers and 152 children have died since the Maoists in 1996 declared their "people's war" aimed at overthrowing the monarchy.

But like much data in Nepal, the toll is merely a collection of figures from local officials. Tripathy described as "deplorable" the quality of statistics on the insurrection's effects on education.

The Maoists, hoping to show their rule in the countryside, have routinely destroyed bridges, roads and any other sign of the government's influence.

Teachers, with their accreditation from central authorities and commitment to instructing a curriculum set by Kathmandu, are often the most visible target for guerrillas bent on establishing a far-left republic.

Mohan Gyawali, general secretary of the Nepal Teachers Organisation, said 85 teachers supporting the Kathmandu-based union have been killed since 1996 and another 1,200 others have fled or been forced out of their home communities.