State govt to close down schools with few students

MAWKYRWAT: The state government has decided to close down all the schools in the state with few students to ease the burden on the exchequer while estimating that an amount of Rs 20 crore per annum can be saved from the move.
Speaking as the chief guest at the inauguration of the new school building of the Hynriew Shnong Higher Secondary School, Shngimawlein in South West Khasi Hills district, Education Minister Lahkmen Rymbui on Tuesday said that there are 222 schools in the state with only three to five students each.
“In Mawkyrwat area, there are 56 schools. Teachers are there, school buildings are there, but in the last five years there are no students”, he said.
“On the other hand, there are also schools with one teacher and 150 students. Therefore, the government in the past one-and-a-half years has carefully planned what to do. We have no other option, but to close such schools because they are useless. Why, since 2009, no higher secondary school in the state received financial assistance from the government? It is because there are many schools….imagine 222 schools, about 800 teachers and only 500 students. Where did the public money which was meant to provide education to the students go? The government wants that the public money should go to those schools which genuinely need it”, Rymbui said.
The minister said the schools will be closed down in the next few months.
“If we do that, approximately Rs 20 crore per annum can be saved. We can appoint teachers to those single-teacher schools with more than 100 students”, Rymbui said.
While assuring that the government will not misuse the money saved from closing down such schools, Rymbui said, “I hope that if we can streamline these things, we can take care of the need of many schools not only in Sngimawlein village but all over the state”.
Rymbui also informed that the state government has completed preparation of the State Education Policy and now is engaged in improving the curriculum so that the students can get proper education which will be on a par with the rest of the country because education has changed and competitive exams have also changed.