Stung by repeated criticism for decrease in student enrollment in the Government schools, the education department would conduct a massive enrollment drive involving all the schools of State on Monday. The School Management Committee (SMC) of all the 12,000 primary and upper primary schools of the State would persuade the people to send their wards to the Government schools under the programe titled ‘Jan jan ka prayas, Shiksha ka vikas’. The education department has also succeeded in persuading the district administration to be part of the mammoth programme. The Education Minister Mantri Prasad Naithani would attend the SMC meeting of Primary school Kandoli in Dehradun district on the day. The Primary Education Director Seema Jaunsari told The Pioneer that the massive campaign is being done for the first time in the State.
She informed that the people would be asked about the benefits like Mid Day Meal (MDM), free textbooks, free uniforms and better quality of teachers in the government schools. The co-curricular activities, sports, scholarship programmes, computer education and Child health programmes would also be discussed during the one day programe. The seriousness of the department for the drive could be gauzed from the fact that it has tried to ensure that at least one senior department/ government officer visits the school on the day. The administration of all the districts has deployed their senior officers to visit the schools and oversee the activities of SMCs. The education department has asked its officers to prepare a detailed point wise report of the day and dispatch it by 12 noon of Tuesday. The education department is under severe criticism for gradual decrease in the student enrollment in the government schools in last few years. The data suggests that private schools are fast catching up with the government schools even in rural areas this is despite of the fact that the state government has doubled the budget on education since 2009.