AIDSO opposes move to bring government schools under private adoption

Students and activists under the banner of AIDSO staging a demonstration in Mysuru on Friday.

The All India Democratic Students’ Organisation (AIDSO), Mysuru district committee, staged a protest near Ramaswamy Circle here on Friday, opposing the State government’s reported move to allow private educational institutions and corporate companies to adopt government schools.

Addressing the protesters, AIDSO district secretary Nitin alleged that the government was paving the way for the closure of 45,000 government schools through the KPS-Magnet policy.

He claimed that a meeting was held at Vidhana Soudha on November 4 to facilitate the adoption of government schools by corporate companies and private educational institutions. “In the first phase, 2,000 government schools would be taken up for adoption,” he alleged.

Criticising remarks by the Chief Minister and other government representatives questioning the quality of education in government schools despite teachers drawing salaries ranging from ₹70,000 to ₹1.5 lakh, he said such statements ignored the government’s responsibility to address policy-related shortcomings in the public education system.

Under the proposal, each private institution would adopt three government schools and be allowed to name the developed schools after itself, the AIDSO claimed in a statement. The government had also reportedly sought private institutions’ support in providing teachers, computers and laboratory equipment, besides making available old buses from private schools, he alleged.

He also claimed that 14 government schools had already been merged with the Hegganuru Karnataka Public School in Kanakapura taluk of Bengaluru South district.

Social activist Ugra Narasimhe Gowda termed the move to hand over government schools built with taxpayers’ money to private institutions as “anti-education”. He urged people to oppose the KPS-Magnet scheme, which he said went against the spirit of the Right to Education Act.

Retired Kannada professor Latha Mysuru criticised Kannada activists and writers for not opposing the policy. DSS leader Chornalli Shivanna also spoke.

Members of the Save Public Education Committee, farmers’ associations, social activists, AIDSO office-bearers and students participated in the protest.