The UP basic education department’s decision to merge government primary and upper primary schools with less than 50 students snowballed into a political controversy, after which the department apparently changed its stand, stating that no process was underway to shut any school.
“The news published in a section of the media regarding the closure of 27,000 basic schools by merging them with nearby schools is misleading and baseless. No process is underway to close any school,” read a social media post by the department on Monday.
The contradiction/clarification came at 11:44am , barely 29 minutes after Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra attacked the UP government over the proposed closure of 27K government schools in the state following their merger.
In her social media post, Priyanka stated, “The BJP government in UP has decided to close 27,764 primary and junior schools. This step is against the education sector as well as children of Dalit, backward, poor and deprived sections.”
Her post on X read: “The UPA government had introduced the Right to Education Act under which a provision was made to have a primary school within a radius of every kilometer so that schools are accessible to children from all sections of society.”
“The aim of welfare policies and schemes is not to earn profit but it’s for welfare of people. BJP does not want education to be accessible to children of weaker sections,” she added.
Director-general (school education) Kanchan Verma said, “There was a communication from the government of India and we are having discussions with our officers. No decision has been taken to merge or shut down schools. Minutes of the meeting with officers does not become an order or decision.”
The basic education department’s plan to merge schools drew flak from teachers’ association as well. Dinesh Chandra Sharma, president of UP Primary Teachers’ Association, in his post on X stated if this news is misleading, then the government should issue a written denial in this regard.
Vipin Bihari, a state awardee teacher, wrote on his X account: “The government should immediately withdraw this decision. If this precedence is set, it will become a norm in future, and no one will be able to change it, and people will have to struggle for education of children.”
“The second loss is to the image of the government because the emergence of such news just before the by-elections can influence people’s decision,” his post read.
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Source: HT
