Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has said that all the reforms introduced in the education sector in the State are to restore the glory of government educational institutions and prepare the students, particularly those from socially and economically weaker sections, to face the competitive world.
Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy was addressing a gathering of teachers at the Teachers' Day celebrations (Guru Pujotsavam) held in the city on Monday.
"We all should assess if the education sector is a liability or an asset and if it is being of any use for children or it exists just to issue certificates. The students from SC, ST, BC, minorities and other such communities are unable to compete with the world even after independence," he said.
"Our government is focused on overhauling the entire education sector and brought in several reforms. These reforms do not trouble the teachers and they are not intended to trouble them. These changes are brought to improve the prospects of the students whose lives could be shaped by teachers," Mr. Jagan said.
Accessibility
The previous government sold the education sector to corporates making quality education a dream for the poorer sections. "Our government aims to make sure that poverty is not an obstacle to any child's education. The reforms are to provide English medium and quality education to poor students, make rest of the country look towards A.P. by bringing back the glory of government schools," he added.
"Even today, many poor parents admit their wards to the government schools as they do not have any other option. They want this to change and the government has enabled mothers to support the education of their children financially. Not just poor students, these reforms are introduced with the aim of making all parents, including government teachers, admit their wards to government schools if they want quality education," Mr. Jagan said.
Priority area
He said the government aimed to increase the literacy rate to 100% and Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in higher education to 70%. "The government has spent over Rs.53,000 crore on education in the State in the past three years and it has been the government's priority," he said.
"In addition to the government's efforts to provide free education, teachers are most critical for giving quality education that shapes the lives of students," he said. To ensure that, the government had given promotions to the deserving candidates and increased the retirement age to 62 among others, he said and added that the opposition parties were conspiring to turn the government employees, including teachers, against the government.
Awards presented
The government announced the best teacher awards to 176 teachers, lecturers and professors in the State and the medals were presented to the awardees by Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy.
Minister for Education Botcha Satyanarayana, School Education Commissioner S. Suresh Kumar and others were present.
