Recently in Tamil Nadu’s budget (2023-24) the Tamil Nadu government announced that the schools run by different departments will be merged with the School Education (SE) department.
What are the schools being merged?
The schools run by the following department will be merged with school education department of Tamil Nadu
Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare (ADTW)
Backward Classes, Most Backward Classes and Denotified Communities Welfare (BCW)
Welfare of the Differently-abled Persons (WPD)
Forest department
Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) departments
These departments together account for 1,834 schools in Tamil Nadu at which roughly 1.6 lakh students study.
What are the reasons for merger?
To achieve the goal of social justice
To improve the quality of schools
To ensure quality education for all
To improve student- teacher ratio
To remove cate names in government schools
To address the grievances of the special schools
To bring unity among the students
What are the various issues of the merger of the schools?
Inadequate consultations– Lack of the consultation with the stake holders in school education .
Prolonged indifference– Filling of vacancies, ensuring transparent procedures for promotions and transfers should be addressed first before the merger.
Discrimination – Merging the schools especially in the Southern districts may increase discrimination towards scheduled castes.
Reduced funding– The merger might result in reduced funding for special schools.
Non- addressal of major issues-Without addressing the prolonged negligence and widespread irregularities, the merger would only result in them being denied the special focus they deserve.
