Increase grants to schools, Ramadass urges govt.

Says budgetary allocation to these institutions is inadequate

M. Ramadass

M. Ramadass, former MP, has flayed the government for its indifference to the grievances of the teaching and non-teaching staff of government-aided schools that had precipitated a “jail filling” agitation by the staff on February 9.

In a statement, Mr. Ramadass said the proposed agitation demanding resolution of their long-pending problems and grievances was unfortunate and was a result of the government’s non-chalant attitude towards the issues.

Aided schools were recognised by the government to offer public education and to receive financial assistance for it. They were maintained and regulated by Puducherry School Education Rules 1996 and amended rules of 2014.

According to section 32 of 1996 rules, aided schools were to be provided grant-in-aid to defray 95% of salaries of staff and administrative expenditure. The salaries of teachers of aided schools were expected to be enhanced

pari passu (at the same rate) with the increase in the salaries of government teachers, Mr. Ramadass said.

Salaries not paid

However, in recent times, contrary to existing rules, the government had failed to provide grant-in-aid to these schools to meet their salary and administrative expenditure. Even the permanent staff had not been paid salary for several months.

In the last Higher Secondary Examination, out of 11 Higher Secondary Schools, six had recorded 100% pass, one 99.78 %, , two from 96 to 98% and two from 85 to 88% pass. “Subjecting these meritorious and distinguished institutions to the financial crisis of the government does not augur well for the educational growth of Puducherry,” Mr. Ramadass said.

According to him, if the government had earmarked 6% of its SDP as suggested by successive education commissions (₹1,933 crore instead of ₹841 crore out of Puducherry SDP of ₹32,220 crore in 2017-18), the education sector would not be facing the present problems.

In the last Budget (2017-18), the government provided a financial assistance of ₹38.06 crore to aided schools which was increased only by ₹1 crore to reach the level of ₹39 crore in the 2018-19 Budget.

This outlay was woefully inadequate to solve the multiple problems of aided schools accumulated over several years, he said.

When the financial situation of these institutions was so grim and required immediate attention of the government, the suggestion of the L-G to cut the grant-in-aid provided to these schools added fuel to fire, he said.

In view of the seriousness of the problem, the elected government should immediately invite the managements of aided schools, discuss their issues from a humanitarian angle and solve them within a prescribed time frame. It would be highly prudent if the government increased the grant-in-aid to these institutions from ₹ 39 crore in to ₹75 crore in the Revised Estimate and solve several vexed problems in one stroke, Mr. Ramadass added.