Schools reopen today amidst protests by teachers unions

Vijayawada: All is set for the re-opening of 46,923 government schools in the State on Monday for the academic year 2016-17. The academic year begins amidst protests from teachers unions and students unions in the wake of reports that the government is trying to close hundreds of schools on the pretext of merging them due to lack of strength of students in some schools.

Highlights:

• They oppose the move by State govt to close schools on pretext of merging them
• 40 lakh students studying in 46,900 schools in State

The government is also considering closing some schools as they lacked some basic facilities. On the other hand, the government is saying that utmost priority is being given to education and more than Rs 22,000 crore has been allocated for education during the current financial year.

Nearly 40 lakh students are studying in government schools in the State. Teachers unions have complained that the government failed to supply textbooks to all schools.The government failed to deliver the textbooks on time to schools and the poor students had to start their first day in schools without textbooks, said United Teachers Federation (UTF) general secretary P Babu Reddy.

He said that delay in sanctioning the grants was the reason for not providing basic facilities at the schools for the children. Till now the textbooks and uniforms were not delivered at schools, he pointed out.

APTF State general secretary G Hrudaya Raj said for the high schools computers and projectors were provided for Digi classrooms which are of no use and have been lying in a pile of dust due to lack of technical staff to teach the children.
He said the government had miserably failed to provide the minimum number of classrooms required for the schools with basic facilities like drinking water, toilets, electricity and furniture.

Progressive Democratic Students Union State president Ravi Chandra said that the government failed to provide textbooks, uniforms and other infrastructure facilities to the schools in the State.

He said that as per GO 29 and 33, as many as 6,000 schools would be closed and it keeps away children of SC, ST, BC and weaker sections from education. He pointed out that in a high school with 300 students there are only 3 to 4 toilets for the girl students and the lady teachers of the schools.The government was not paying attention to providing basic amenities at the school, he said.