Shillong, OCTOBER 9: The Ministry of Education has expressed concern over the low enrollment in Meghalaya as the enrollment of students in Primary and Upper Primary schools in the state have come down drastically.
Revealing this here , Education Minister, Rakkam A Sangma said that as per the Ministry’s data, there are as many as 168 primary schools which have less than 10 enrollment while there are 101 Upper Primary Schools where the enrollment is dismal
Terming the situation as alarming, the Minister however said that closing down these institutions will not be the solution as first of all the Government of Meghalaya would have to verify the report and find out the reasons for such low enrollment
“ it is a matter of concern and challenge for me,” the Minister said
Regarding the consolidation of schools due to low enrollment, Sangma acknowledged that some schools have undergone this process. However, he highlighted the impracticality of merging certain schools, especially those located in remote or inaccessible areas.
He pointed out that there are some schools situated atop hills with distances of 5 to 10 kilometers and it is students face diffcultires in commuting such long distances.
He however added that the department will take steps to rationalize the enrollment in these schools
Meanwhile, the Education Minister also said that two months’ salary for the SSA teachers would be released within the next two weeks while adding that the Government of India is yet to release the first installment and the money is being expected to be released any time soon.