Left-wing student unions demand withdrawal of GO No. 97 on polytechnic education

Left-wing student unions held a protest at Government Polytechnic College in Rudrampur, Kothagudem, demanding the revocation of GO No. 97. They opposed the proposed PPP model and called for stronger public polytechnic education, infrastructure, faculty and student support.

Kothagudem: A massive protest was held at Government Polytechnic College at Rudrampur here on Wednesday under the aegis of Left-wing student unions, demanding the revocation of GO No. 97, which they described as a curse for polytechnic students.

The protesters insisted that polytechnic education should remain under the jurisdiction of the State Board of Technical Education and Training (SBTET), rather than being affiliated with the Young India Skills University along with Skill, Human Capital, and Knowledge Training Initiatives (SHAKTI) under a public-private partnership (PPP) model.

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PDSU district president Burra Veerabhadram, district secretaries Durgam Pranay and J Ganesh, AISA state coordinator Jammi Ashok and PDSU Khammam district secretary Manda Suresh took part in the protest and spoke to the media.

They stated that polytechnic education was a crucial system for producing the skilled youth required by industries, the construction sector and the technical field. The ill-conceived GO No. 97 by the Congress government could lead to neglect of this sector and cause severe hardships for thousands of students.

They criticised the government for failing to address numerous issues, such as faculty shortages, lack of infrastructure and laboratories, hostel problems, pending scholarship and fee reimbursement dues, and complications regarding examinations and academic regulations.

Veerabhadram pointed out that the detention policy was leading to situations where students lose an entire academic year. Additional instruction and opportunities for exam re-attempts should be provided to students.

Polytechnic colleges have to be strengthened within the public sector rather than being pushed towards the PPP model. Vacant faculty posts in polytechnic colleges should be filled up, besides reviewing the detention policy and protecting polytechnic education from privatisation.

GO No. 97 harms diploma and engineering lateral-entry opportunities and could reduce students to skilled labour. If the government failed to revoke the GO, students in large numbers would be mobilised to confront the Congress government, he warned.