Residential schools could weaken family bonds, says CM Revanth Reddy

CM Revanth Reddy said while supporting the residential schools system, the government should focus on schools in the villages to ensure that students stay with their parents and continue their studies.

Hyderabad: Pointing out that many residential schools were set up across the State in the recent past, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy cited a study report and said the bonding between parents and their children was weakening as students were admitted into these schools at a very young age.

Students were being admitted in the residential schools, which far from their native villages and parents. This was leading to weakening of family bonding and relations. This could trigger social issues in the future, the Chief Minister said referring to the study report.

---

Participating in a programme at Ravindra Bharathi to felicitate students who excelled in tenth exams here on Monday, Revanth Reddy said while supporting the residential schools system, the government should focus on schools in the villages to ensure that students stay with their parents and continue their studies. He also announced that the State government would examine the proposal of setting up semi-residential schools. These schools would aid in increasing enrolment as the students would be provided with breakfast, lunch and evening snacks and parents would not have to worry about arranging food for their children and pick them up after the work.

Stating that government schools were left to their fate in the past, he said the Congress government was according top priority to government schools and the facilities being provided to students in the schools. Single teacher schools were shut in the past, citing lack of student enrolment. The Congress government was now ensuring that quality education was offered in remote villages and thandas without any financial burden on the parents, he said.

On an average, the State government was spending about Rs.80,000 on each student. Most of these amounts were being spent towards salaries and infrastructure development was ignored and this led to a chaotic situation, he said. The Congress government through mega DSC notification was planning to fill up over 11,000 vacant teacher posts. Similarly, all the dilapidated schools were being reconstructed and infrastructure facilities were being provided at a cost of Rs.2,000 crore, the Chief Minister said, adding that Professor Jayashankar Badi Bata programme was being conducted from June 9 to 20 across the State.

This apart, the schools maintenance, including mid day meals, distribution of uniforms was entrusted to women SHGs. Amma Adarsha School committees were constituted with SHGs for maintenance of schools, including expenditure of funds, he added.