Karnataka’s move to shut 13,800 govt schools ‘direct effect of anti-education NEP 2020’: AIDSO

NEW DELHI: All India Democratic Students Association (AIDSO) Karnataka has condemned the state government’s move to permanently shut 13,800 government schools with less than 25 students and merge them with ‘model schools’. AIDSO expressed shock that the Karnataka government has shown no hesitation in blatantly telling that these many schools will be closed down this academic year.

“AIDSO reiterates that all these are a direct effect of the anti-people, anti-education NEP-2020 implementation in Karnataka,” said Ajay Kamath, state secretary, AIDSO.

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As per the Unified District Information System for Education (UDISE) report, the dropout rates in Karnataka elementary schools stood at 1.4% and secondary schools at 16.6%.

The Students association has initiated a campaign against the merger of these schools, which has been signed by 3 lakh people already, and asked students and ‘education loving’ people to join the campaign against the government's decision.

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AIDSO said that state education minister B C Nagesh has accepted that lack of facilities in government schools is the cause for decreased admissions in Karnataka. It said that the government should have improved the facilities in government schools instead of closing them down.

“Current academic year has witnessed a horrifying situation in which 10 lakh students dropped out of schools in Karnataka. At times like these improving the facilities, appointing adequate numbers of teachers to government schools should have been the priority of the government. In creating 'model schools' and merger of schools, the government's intentions appear very clear!,” AIDSO statement added.