Why no teachers in 1,800 schools: CJ

HYDERABAD: Taken aback at the strange situation wherein 1,800 government schools across Telangana were left to function with out a single teacher after the recent transfers, the Hyderabad High Court on Thursday directed the state government to furnish a clear picture by Monday.

The bench of Chief Justice T B Radhakrishnan and Justice V Ramasubramanian was hearing a public interest petition filed by R Venkat Reddy, national convenor, M V Foundation, who expressed concern over the declining standards of education in government schools. He requested the court to direct the state to act immediately to improve standards.

N S Arjun Kumar, the counsel for the petitioner, said after the recent mass transfer of teachers in the state, 1,800 schools did not have even a single teacher as the existing ones were shifted out and the new ones reluctant to take charge.

The chief justice stated that in Kerala, some MLAs were sending their children to government schools and many students from government and governmentaided schools were securing state-level ranks in the board exams.

The Chief Justice said if Telangana legislators take a similar step, then the standards in government schools here would also improve.

‘50% kids can’t read English & Telugu’

The CJ said if Telangana MLAs take a similar step, then the standards in government schools here would also improve.

The petitioner was seeking a direction to both, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh governments, to take concrete steps for improving learning outcome of students studying in government and government-aided schools.

“Over 50% of students in these schools cannot even read or write in English and Telugu, do basic additions or subtractions or understand basic science concepts. Unless active steps are taken by the government, the situation will not improve,” Arjun Kumar said.

The bench, while appreciating the issues raised by the petitioner, lamented that there was little scope for the court to intervene to ensure better learning outcomes.

The bench directed the Telangana government pleader for the school education department to furnish details about lack of teachers in 1,800 by Monday.