Schools in the State will open when the conditions are conducive, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said.
He was speaking after inaugurating through video conference 90 schools transformed as centres of excellence as part of the ‘Mikavinte Kendram’ project on Saturday.
The Chief Minister said the pandemic was not here to stay forever. Focus was on containing its spread. When the situation returned to normal, schools would reopen. In the meanwhile, online classes were progressing well and the loss of an academic year had been averted.
He said the aim of the Public Education Rejuvenation Mission was to transform schools into centres of excellence. This had been made possible to a large extent with concerted efforts of people’s representatives, local self-government institutions, parent-teacher associations, former students, and individuals.
However, any reluctance from any quarter to support these efforts should be set aside for public good. If this were to happen, schools would be assured of fund inflow much greater than what the government would be able to sanction. The people should also pay close attention to schools and their development.
The changes brought in as part of the mission were aimed at the future generations. There was still much to be done for improvement of the public education sector. Changes should continue in tune with changing times.
Any detractors should keep in mind that from a situation where schools were on the verge of closure five lakh new students had entered public schools in the past three years, Mr. Vijayan said.
Of the 90 school buildings inaugurated, two each were in Pathanamthitta and Kasaragod, three each in Kottayam and Ernakulam, four in Wayanad, five in Idukki, six each in Kollam and Palakkad, seven in Kozhikode, nine in Malappuram, 10 each in Thiruvananthapuram and Alappuzha, 11 in Thrissur, and 12 in Kannur, Mr. Vijayan said.
Four school buildings were built using ₹5 crore from Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB); 20 using ₹3 crore again from KIIFB; 62 buildings using Plan fund; and four using NABARD funds.
The Chief Minister also laid the foundation stone for 54 schools in 10 districts through video conference. Two of these will come up in Ernakulam, three each in Kollam, Kottayam, Palakkad and Kasaragod, four in Pathanamthitta, seven in Malappuram, nine in Kozhikode, and 17 in Wayanad. Thirty-four buildings will be built utilising ₹3 crore from KIIFB and the remaining 20 using ₹40 crore from the Plan funds.
