SUNDAY, MAY 19, 2024
Will Bal Rath Yojna spell doom for govt schools in Canacona?
HERALD CORRESPONDENT
CANACONA, APRIL 3
Will the Central government’s prestigious scheme Indira Bal Rath Yojna enforced by Directorate of Social Welfare providing school bus service to aided schools having a minimum of 10% of ST community in the State prove a blow to other government-owned high schools?
The coming academic years could bring major changes, they say, and if sources are to be believed, some government schools in Canacona taluka seem to be heading towards a bleak future, ultimately throwing these schools in unfortunate disarray with parents preferring only aided schools for their wards to avail free Bal Rath bus service.
It may be recalled that government under Social Welfare Scheme had purchased buses for all the aided schools, which has above 10% strength of ST community students.
Accordingly, almost all the aided schools in the taluka became eligible for Bal Rath school bus service, as all these schools have ST community strength of above 30%.
Even a resident school run by Poinguinim MLA having 100% ST community students enrollment was one of the first schools to avail Bal Rath bus, notwithstanding the fact that no transportation of students is required either to bring the students to school or take-back home, as all students are inmates of this residential school at Ordhofond.
With the introduction of Bal Rath service in aided schools, a severe discrepancy has erupted to the disadvantage of ST community children enrolled in government-run schools at Gaondongrim, Agonda, Khotigao, Shristhal, Gowal-Khola and Sadolxem.
In some cases, one sect of siblings from the same household attends two different schools, with few going in government-run school found that they are left either to walk or avail public transportation to reach their school as before.
Their other siblings are privileged as a bus comes to take and bring them back from the aided schools they attend.
For example, Gaondongrim, already in dire straits government high school with not as expected enrollment of students and little ahead an aided school Shri Nirankal High School, Tudal in the same village.
Sources informed that in both schools, majority of students are from ST community, while one sect of ST students attending a private school avails Bal Rath school bus facility, the ST community’s other siblings going to Government High School has no such facility.
To add to further miseries, sources informed that Kadamba buses which used to ply at school hours are discontinued now after the introduction of Bal Rath buses, which in turn have again inconvenienced students going to government high schools.
Sources further informed that many parents at Gaondongrim whose children are attending Government High School are now contemplating to change their wardens’ school and instead send them to Shri Nirankal High School, Tudal, which has Bal Rath bus service.
Interestingly, Gaondongrim’s Government High School is not the only village to face such an irony in future, but if things stands as off now, government high school in Agonda is likely to face similar challenges in the coming academic year if some corrective measures are not forthcoming.
A teacher speaking on the condition of anonymity said: “One need not have aided school in the vicinity of government schools to see that school’s downfall, as a larger conspiracy will grow henceforth, with some of the aided schools offering Bal Rath free transportation for students from those areas if certain enrollment is done in their schools.”
A headmaster of one of the government high school expressed same fear and even informed that his school was the first to submit an application to avail Bal Rath bus, but since the facility is not applicable to government-run schools, bus is not given.
“If Bal Rath bus scheme is not extended to government schools, there will be serious repercussions leading to the survival of several government schools,” said the headmaster.
Few students presently attending aided schools in towns from distant places gets no benefit of Bal Rath, as according to sources those schools management refuses to send Bal Rath bus if students strength from those localities coming to their school is less than 10.
Sources informed that moves are on to include students from OBC community for free Bal Rath bus service to attend schools.
Meanwhile, several residents in the taluka raises eyebrows over alleged illegalities supposedly committed by various aided-school managements who reportedly highhandedly floated normal recruitment rules while giving appointments to drivers and assistants to run Bal Rath buses in their respective schools.
A driver and his assisting hand on Bal Rath bus is assured monthly payment of Rs 10,000 and Rs 5,000 respectively.
