Thousands of students who shifted out of private schools and enrolled in government schools this academic year have still not got their textbooks and uniforms, while some are not even getting their midday meals. This is because while they made the switch during the pandemic, private school managements are refusing to issue transfer certificates.
An official from the Department of Public Instruction said that thousands of students across the State have been put to hardship because of this. While these students have started attending classes in government schools, they are still listed as enrolled in private schools in the Student Achievement Tracking System (SATS) and are hence unable to get textbooks, uniforms, and midday meals. “If we try to register the child once again, the system says there is a doubling mistake,” the official said.
The headmaster of a government high school said enrolment in his school, located in Bengaluru, has increased and 20 new students were admitted. “Of the 20 students, 12 were earlier studying in private schools but have not been issued transfer certificates. While we are providing them with midday meals, we are unable to issue uniforms and textbooks as these students are not enrolled in the SATS database under our school,” he said.
A question of fee
D. Shashi Kumar, general secretary of the Associated Managements of Primary and Secondary Schools in Karnataka, said that private schools were not issuing TCs as parents had not paid their dues for the past two academic years. “Many have refused to pay for the online classes that their children attended. This is a gross injustice and school managements will incur huge losses if the parents do not pay up,” he said.
R. Vishal, Commissioner for Public Instruction, acknowledged the problem and said that the matter would be resolved on a case-by-case basis. “We will ensure that students are not denied midday meals,” he said.
