Infrastructural facilities in government Urdu medium schools are set to improve, with the State Urdu Academy deciding to extend financial assistance to them. For the first time, the Urdu Academy has come up with a unique scheme to improve basic facilities in schools.
A sum of Rs. 2 crore is proposed to be spent for improvement of infrastructure during 2013-14. There are 2,753 Urdu medium schools in the State, besides 646 parallel schools with both Urdu and Telugu medium sections. A total of 2.24 lakh students are enrolled here. But, the amenities leave a lot to be desired.
Most schools do not have proper seating arrangement for both teachers and the taught. Lack of clean drinking water is a common complaint, while some schools do not have even blackboards.
The Urdu Academy plans to improve facilities in a phased manner. To start with, it is proposed to extend Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 20,000 to each school for purchase of study material.
“Next year, more budget will be earmarked for this scheme,” said Prof. S.A. Shukoor, Director, Urdu Academy. The scheme will be notified shortly, and applications will be invited from schools for financial assistance. Headmasters will be asked to intimate the infrastructure position as well as student strength in their respective schools.
“Money will be routed through the District Educational Officers, and it will be released after due inspection so as not to give scope for irregularities,” Prof. Shukoor added.
The Urdu Academy has a budget of Rs. 25.11 crore, which is up from Rs. 7.40 crore last year. Of this, Rs. 10 crore has been allocated for the construction of Urdu Ghar cum Shadikhanas and Rs. 8.11 crore for the promotion of Urdu, the core mandate of the Academy. It has now decided to allocate Rs. 2 crore from this head for improvement of infrastructural facilities in schools. The Urdu Academy is awaiting the release of the third quarter grant to launch the new scheme.
