Samastha affiliate plans stir against additional school hours in Kerala
Association office-bearers told the media here on Tuesday that the future course of action would be declared at a public convention to be held at the Kozhikode Town Hall at 10 a.m. on July 10.
The working hours for Classes VIII to X in these schools have been increased by 30 minutes in total — 15 minutes each in the morning and afternoon — on all days except Fridays. This is to realise the target of 220 working days and 1,100 instructional hours for Class VIII as per the Right to Education Act and for Classes IX and X as per the Kerala Education Rules.
Moideen Faizy Puthanazhi, general secretary, SKMMA, claimed that the additional working hours would affect the functioning of the madrasas, which run their classes for two-and-a-half hours in the morning from 6.30 a.m. or 7 a.m.
High school students who attend madrasa classes would find it difficult to reach their schools on time, he claimed. Mr. Puthanazhi alleged that though the Samastha functionaries, including its president Syed Mohammed Jifri Muthukoya Thangal, had submitted a memorandum to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan soon after the government expressed its intention to increase the working hours in schools, their concerns were ignored.
'Government officials are claiming that the additional hours are only for high school students. However, many government schools in Kerala have upper primary and lower primary sections as well. Their classes start at the same time. So, the justification is not acceptable,' he said.
Asked if they had any alternatives to suggest, K. Moyinkutty, manager, SKMMA, said that the government should first call them for talks. 'They can think of utilising Saturdays as working days or use some days during the two-month vacation period as working days,' he added.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
3 hours ago
- The Hindu
Physical education teacher-student ratio rejigged
The physical education teacher-student ratio in schools in the State will be rejigged to 1:300 to protect teachers who had lost their posts. A meeting convened by Minister for General Education V. Sivankutty here recently reached the decision. It will be sent for the Chief Minister's approval. The physical education teacher-student ratio currently is 1:500. The meeting was held to discuss a slew of demands raised by school physical education teachers. When the 1:300 ratio is considered for upper primary (UP) classes, physical education teachers who lose their posts will be protected by clubbing the lower primary wing of the school too with the UP. To protect high school physical education teachers, the number of physical education periods in class X too will be considered. At present, one post of physical education teacher is created if there are five divisions across classes VIII and IX. Class X divisions are currently not considered for the appointment. So if there is a division fall in classes VIII and IX, then the number of periods in class X will be considered to protect the teachers. In high schools with UP section, high school physical education teachers can be clubbed with the UP wing to protect them. Physical education teachers allege that an order protecting them had been issued as a temporary arrangement in 2017 when they had staged protests to press their demands. These had been issued since then too, but their demands such as change in teacher-student ratio through amendment in the Kerala Education Rules had not been addressed. The physical education teachers have been demanding that all students in State schools receive physical education training. At present, lower primary classes have no physical education periods. Higher secondary classes have physical education periods but no teachers. There are only 1,800-odd physical education teachers in the State. Physical education teachers estimate that 85% of UP schools and 45% of high schools have no physical education teachers. They point out that 11 teachers lost their posts last year while there were more this year.
Hans India
a day ago
- Hans India
BRSV Student Leaders from Jogulamba Gadwal Depart for State-Level Telangana Student Conference in Hyderabad
Student leaders of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi Vidyarthi (BRSV) from Jogulamba Gadwal district have departed for Hyderabad to participate in the BRSV State-Level Telangana Student Conference, scheduled to be held today at VNR Gardens, Mallapur, Uppal. Under the supervision of BRSV Jogulamba Gadwal District Coordinator Kurva Pallayya, a team of active student leaders left the district early this morning to take part in the prestigious gathering aimed at discussing student issues, leadership, and the future direction of the student wing. The event will commence at 10:00 AM with an inaugural address by former Minister and sitting MLA Harish Rao, who is expected to highlight the role of students in shaping Telangana's future and the importance of educational empowerment through active political participation. Following lunch, MLC Deshapati Srinivas will deliver a speech, addressing the students on Telangana's cultural, academic, and political legacy. Later in the day, former Minister and MLA Jagadish Reddy will address the gathering, expected to speak about the contributions of students in the development of the state and the role of BRSV in voicing student concerns. The highlight of the conference will be a keynote address by BRS Working President K.T. Rama Rao (KTR), who will provide strategic guidance and direction to the BRSV student leaders. KTR's address is anticipated to focus on youth leadership, innovation, and the evolving role of students in state and national politics. This large-scale student conference aims to empower student leaders across Telangana, strengthen organizational unity, and prepare the next generation of socially and politically aware youth. The enthusiastic participation of Jogulamba Gadwal district's BRSV delegation reflects the district's strong student engagement and commitment to the party's vision.
Time of India
a day ago
- Time of India
High court seeks Punjab govt's response on plea for CBI probe into rule denying RTE benefits
1 2 Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana high court has issued a notice to the Punjab govt on a plea seeking a CBI investigation into the controversial Rule 7(4) of the Punjab RTE Rules — a regulation that, for over a decade, enabled private schools to sidestep mandatory admissions for children from economically weaker sections (EWS) for free education under the Right to Education Act, 2009. A division bench comprising Chief Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice Sanjiv Berry issued the notice after taking cognisance of a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by former IAS officer Dr Jagmohan Singh Raju. The matter has been fixed for Sept 22. Arguing before the bench, Dr Raju asserted that Rule 7(4) was "unconstitutional, corrupt, and deliberately crafted" to serve the commercial interests of private unaided schools at the cost of disadvantaged children's rights. He pleaded that the insertion of Rule 7(4) by the Punjab govt smacked of corruption, as this regulation prima facie appeared to have been incorporated primarily to provide a legal escape route to private unaided schools to avoid a reduction in their revenue on account of the considerable difference between the fee ordinarily charged by a private unaided school and the amount reimbursed by the govt per child admitted under Section 12(1)(c) of the RTE Act, 2009. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like AirSense 11 – Smart tech for deep sleep ResMed Buy Now Undo The petitioner argued that the rule created a quid pro quo ecosystem, favouring private schools and shielding them from statutory consequences. "The state exchequer suffered massive financial losses, as no fines were levied or collected for 15 years. The insertion of Rule 7(4) smacks of large-scale, institutionalised corruption. A CBI inquiry is essential as state-level agencies have an inherent conflict of interest and lack the independence to investigate govt-originated wrongdoing," the petitioner submitted. Earlier, while taking cognisance of Dr Raju's plea, the high court struck down Rule 7(4) and directed the immediate implementation of the 25% EWS quota across private schools from the academic year 2025–26.
