Students from just 28 schools to get new alma mater within 1km

PUNE: Closure of some schools in the district as mandated by the state government for having few students will mean discomfort for some children as they will be accommodated in schools that are 7km away, Pune zilla parishad officials said.
As many as 76 schools will shut down. Officials said students from only 28 schools will be accommodated in establishments that are in a 1km radius. Of these, 14 were closed last month. The data of the remaining 62 schools is being uploaded by block education officers. It will effect 525 students and 125 teachers.

The ZP has formed a committee to find out which of the 62 schools cannot be shut down because there is no school nearby. Education experts and activists said the government's decision will up the drop out rate especially among girl students.



"The 14 schools were closed in December as the attendance in them was almost zero. The block education officers have mapped the remaining schools which need to be closed and the nearest school to accommodate the students," a ZP official said.

They have been told to fill up the last three years enrolment data. There are schools which have just two students in the past three years.. They agreed that on paper the new school could be one or 2km but it may differ in reality. "The distances between the school that will shut down and the new school where students will be sent are calculated aerially. In reality, there can be a forest or a hill and students may need to walk much more," an official said.

The ZP office has got many letters of objection from the villages where schools are being shut. "The five-member committee will send suggestions to the government for nearby schools, schools that are far away and if the students may drop out." State education secretary Nandkumar said all inputs will be considered before closing the schools. "The data that the districts collate on the online link will be studied first and then action will be taken."