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The Hindu
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Unaided schools oppose fee reimbursement plan for students admitted under RTE Act
Members of unaided private school management associations in Andhra Pradesh are strongly opposing the government's proposed 'per child expenditure' amount for fee reimbursement. This reimbursement is meant for students admitted under Section 12(1)(c) of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009. The Act mandates unaided private schools to reserve 25% of their entry-level seats for children belonging to the economically weaker sections and disadvantaged groups. To decide the 'per child expenditure' amount, the government recently formed a committee. This committee is chaired by the Principal Secretary of Government School Education and includes the State Project Director of Samagra Shiksha (as member and convener), the Commissioner of School Education, representatives from private and unaided school management associations, and NGOs such as Indus Action, Pratham, and UNICEF. The committee members, who represented AP Private, Unaided Schools Managements Association, AP Private Schools' Association, AP Independent School Managements Association (ISMA) and United Private Education Institutions, raised objections to the proposed classification of schools and demanded that the government fix the reimbursement amount according to the Right to Education Act. They argued that the officials' approach on the issue was unfair and burdensome to the private schools. Accusing the State government of failure in fulfilling its obligation on reimbursement of the fees of these children in the last three years, they said the GOs released during this period were also struck down by the Andhra Pradesh High Court. They said despite tremendous financial pressure, the private school managements allowed the students to continue their education in their respective institutions. Citing pending reimbursement of last three years, they said the government should clarify who will clear the pending payment and demanded that the government adopt a practical and fair stand on the issue and fix the reimbursement amount as per stipulated norms. They said several small institutions were on the verge of closure due to the increasing financial pressure and added that their plight would further deteriorate if the State went ahead with its decision on the fee structure.
The Hindu
7 days ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Teachers' body seeks redressal of issues on transfers
Members of Navya Andhra Teachers' Association on Sunday (May 25) urged Commissioner of School Education V. Vijay Rama Raju to address issues pertaining to reapportionment of teaching staff, transfers, subject allocations and teacher promotions. During a coordination meeting held with the official, the association members put forth their demands. They said the Primary School Head Master (PSHM) post should be allotted to the most senior in-service teachers, dedicated Telugu subject teacher post should be allocated in upper primary schools and teachers who were transferred in 2017 should be granted full eight years of service points. They also demanded amendments to the G.O. on reapportionment of teaching staff, that the number of teaching periods be capped at 32 in high schools and that the minimum size of a class section be fixed at 45 students. Surplus students should be adjusted before initiating the transfer process. They said all the posts relating to DSC-2025 should reflect in the teacher transfer process and no post should be blocked. Raising concern over shifting of Zilla Parishad posts to other managements, they said ZP teachers were already suffering due to a lack of service rules and promotion opportunities for over 25 years. They said that for model primary school headmaster posts, manual counselling should be conducted for only those who explicitly express willingness, and School Assistants who did not wish to opt for HM posts should still be allowed to apply for School Assistant posts during the same counselling.
The Hindu
16-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Teacher unions boycott meeting with officials, demand immediate solutions to critical issues
Leaders of recognised teacher associations in the State on Friday (May 16) boycotted the meeting scheduled to have taken place with the Director of School Education V. Vijay Rama Raju to discuss key issues. They accused the School Education Department officials of 'unilaterally implementing policies that will negatively impact the school education sector''. They said to intensify their protest, teachers across the State would stage protests at the District Education Offices on May 21, and on May 23 a massive demonstration would be staged at the office of the Director of School Education. They also insisted that teacher associations' meetings be conducted only in the presence of the HRD Minister Nara Lokesh. 'We have had 30 rounds of meetings so far, but none of our suggestions have been taken into consideration,' president of the Andhra Pradesh Teachers' Federation (APTF) Ch. Manjula said, speaking to the media outside 'Vidya Bhavan' on Friday. She said the unions had given a representation with 16 demands that they wanted the officials to address at the earliest. 'Should the government ignore our pleas, we will be forced to further intensify our protest,' she warned. Additional sections The leaders said in high schools, based on a 1:30 ratio, a second section should be established once student strength exceeds 45. For every additional 40 students, a new section should be created. They said appointing School Assistants as Headmasters of Model Primary Schools was unscientific. They wanted parallel mediums to continue and staff pattern be maintained accordingly. They said in Foundation and Basic Primary Schools, a third post should be sanctioned once the strength reaches 41. They also demanded promotions to Secondary Grade Teachers in Model Primary Schools and said Headmasters should be appointed accordingly. In Foundation Primary Schools, 1:20 teacher-student ratio should be implemented, they said. Citing the case of teachers who were given promotions as part of the 'staff reapportionment' exercise taken up in 2023, they said the teachers stared at a similar situation now and faced injustice in transfers. They said without resolving the issue of Government and Panchayat Raj Service Rules, it was unfair to ask teachers with longstanding experience to move back to their parent management. The leaders said they had always extended their cooperation to the government in improving the education sector. However, they were opposed to the unilateral decisions taken without considering their opinions and suggestions.
The Hindu
16-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
T.N. officials to seek clarity from Union Ministry of Education on dues under RTE Act
Tamil Nadu officials including the State Project Director for Samagra Shiksha and the Principal Secretary for School Education have gone to Delhi to meet with Union Ministry of Education seeking clarity on reimbursement dues under the Right to Education Act said, School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi on Friday in Chennai. Addressing mediapersons he said, 'The Chief Secretary had written a letter seeking clarity over the pending dues to the State. Union government is yet to sanction 617 crore for Right to Education. We will take a call once there is more clarity regarding this. The officials will be seeking an update on this.' Under the RTE Act private, unaided schools reserve 25% of their entry-level seats for children from disadvantaged groups and weaker sections for which admissions begin in the first week of May. The state government reimburses around Rs 400 crore towards the admission to private schools every year.
The Hindu
14-05-2025
- General
- The Hindu
School buses come under thorough inspection
Joint inspection of school vehicles under Tamil Nadu Motor Vehicles (Regulation and Control of School Buses) Rules in Virudhunagar district to ensure safety of students was conducted here on Wednesday. Collector V.P. Jeyaseelan visited the Armed Reserve Ground where the inspection of school buses were being done by officials from the district administration and the departments of Police, Transport and School Education. During the inspection, the officials inspected whether the fire fighting equipment were properly maintained in the buses and whether the vehicles had first aid boxes. The Collector also checked the working of emergency exits in the buses and whether speed governors were fitted in the vehicles so that the drivers cannot operate the buses in higher speed. As it has been mandated for the school administration to appoint attenders with due licence, the officials verified the licence of the attenders. These attenders have to help the students while boarding and alighting. The officials also checked whether the footboards of the vehicles were properly designed for the students to easily climb up and down from the buses. As per the rules, the first step should be 25 cm to 30 cm above ground level. The officials also inspected whether the driver's cabin was duly separated. They also checked the seating arrangment, including whether they were firmly fitted on the floor of the bus. They also tested the stability of the bus floor, railings in the windows to prevent the children from protruding their hands and heads out of the body of the bus. A total of 819 school buses belonging to 177 private schools have been given licence in Virudhunagar district by different Regional Transport Offices. Among the 569 school buses which were subjected to inspection, 500 buses were cleared for transportation of the students, while 69 buses were rejected for certain shortcomings. The respective school administration has been advised to take corrective measures in those vehicles for another round of inspection. Medical camps were organised for the school bus drivers on the occasion. Experts from '108' ambulance services demonstrated life-saving techniques and firemen demonstrated fire-fighting techniques to the bus drivers. Additional Superintendent of Police K. Ashokan; District Officer (Fire and Rescue Services) Chandrasekar; Revenue Divisional Officer- Sattur Sivakumar; Regional Transport Officers, Manickam (Virudhunagar), Chandrasekar (Srivilliputtur), Velumani (Sivakasi); Deputy Superintendent of Police Yogeswaran; District Educational Officer (Private Schools) Subburaj were among those who were present.
