Latest news with #TPJAC
The Hindu
27-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
‘Only sufficient budget can save government school education system'
Leaders and voluntary organisations on Tuesday said that only sufficient budget allocation can save the public-school education system amid a declining enrolment trend in government schools in the State. A roundtable organised by Telangana People's Joint Action Committee (TPJAC) deliberated on the issues and challenges being faced by government schools and called for a comprehensive education legislation. 'Starting from age three to 18, the government must address pre-primary school and intermediate education needs. Then, on the lines of Kendriya Vidyalayas, a student must be able to pursue KG to 12 from the same school,' national convenor of MV Foundation R. Venkat Reddy said. TPJAC co-convenor Kanneganti Ravi, citing 2023-24 school data, said 'There were 28,856 schools (70.5%) government schools with 19,40,964 children enrolled (39%). Schools with a single teacher were 4,235 (23%) and schools with below 50 students were 13,930 (76%). On the other hand, there were 12,022 (29.4%) private schools and they had 36,35,898 (61%) students. And in 2024-25, 1,789 government schools were closed.' If the government is not bothered about schools being shut, if parents, teachers and citizens are not worried, and if no corrective actions are taken now – there will be no government schools in the future, the TPJAC leaders noted. The government's flagship programmes such as Young India Integrated Residential Schools (YIIRS) are not an answer to improving the system but taking care of existing schools and reopening schools that are closed, they said. Another leader K. Ravi Chander, citing 1,023 gurukul institutions in the State, said the YIIRS as an idea must be withdrawn. 'At ₹200 crore for YIIRS per Assembly constituency, or ₹23,800 crore, 700 residential institutions operating on rental basis can have their own buildings. Instead, the various gurukuls such as SC, BC, ST, Minorities and General can be renamed YIIRS, and all the 1,023 institutions must be administered by one management with unified rules'. According to retired teacher Y. Ashok Kumar, the education budget allocated by the Congress government in 2025-26 is ₹23,108 crore or 7.75% of the total estimate, which is ₹1,816 crore more than the previous year. But the Congress party rallied and promised a 15% education budget. MLC Kodandaram, in a brief address, said the government considers budget for education as an investment and initiatives such as the Telangana Education Commission were in a positive direction. The TPJAC had been gathering reactions from parents, teachers and public using Google Forms about their perception towards government schools and the declining enrolment. It proposes to submit its report along with people's perceptions to the government.
The Hindu
13-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Congress govt. is no different if anti-people development policies continue, says NAPM
There must be no hope that a government, such as the one by Congress, which replaced the decade-old autocratic rule by Bharat Rashtra Samithi would be any better. 'The Congress government is no different, it continues the anti-people and anti-nature model of development, and hence civil society must be alive to rebut its way and strengthen people's movements in Telangana,' said the Telangana People's Joint Action Committee (TPJAC). Along with National Alliance of People's Movements (NAPM), the Committee on Monday, with several grassroot leaders voiced against the 'destructive and anti-people' developmental framework of the State government in a roundtable held here at Sundarayya Vignana Kendram. According to rights activist G. Haragopal, who chaired the meeting, only people's movements can stop such a development model and cause an alternate development model to emerge. 'People's lives will be put in danger if the government continues environmental destruction in the name of development. It must re-think its design. Congress was believed to behave in a different way, but it is doing the same thing as the previous government,' he said. Leaders who stood up for various people's movements — Saraswathi Kavula on Mucherla Pharma City, retired IICT scientist K. Babu Rao on ethanol distilleries, Kiran Vissa on farmers' rights, Meera Sanghamitra and Nikitha on Damagundam Navy Radar Station, suspended headmaster Vijaya Kumar on Dilawarpur ethanol plant, and several legal and land rights activists — presented the ground situation, and their before-after experience with Congress leaders. 'We walked the Bharat Jodo Yatra, we rallied against BRS ways. Several Congress leaders too visited Mallannasagar, Mucherla, and Yadadri Thermal Power Plant, and objected to KCR's Land Acquisition Act of 2017, liquor sale in Telangana, and many other anti-people issues. But those very Congress leaders don't take calls, give us appointments now. Congress continues land acquisition like KCR, and in many ways behaves like BRS,' they said. According to TPJAC's Ravi Kanneganti: 'It is true that some representatives, who are not here, believe that criticising the Congress government would benefit BJP and BRS. But it is clear — the role of civil society is to stand with the people and their struggles and not with any party.' The collective made four demands: High-polluting industries such as ethanol, pharma and thermal projects must not be encouraged in the State; land acquisition must be done as per the 2013 Act; a fourth future city is unnecessary and the proposals must be withdrawn; and permission for Navy Radar Station to Indian Navy in Damagundam must be cancelled.
