Congress slams govt over board exam dropouts

KORAPUT: The Congress has criticised the state government for reportedly failing to arrest the dropout rate as at least 973 students skipped the first day of the annual HSC board examination on Friday in the district.
AICC member Manasha Tripathy, on Sunday, alleged that while the state government talks big on the school transformation programme under its 5T initiative, the ground reality provides a contrast picture in the tribal-dominated district.
"While the government has upgraded the schools under its transformation programme and spent crores of rupees, it has miserably failed in arresting the dropout rate. Nearly 1,000 students skipping the Class X board examination is a matter of concern," said Tripathy.
According to Tripathy, most of the students who have skipped the board examination belong to the government-run schools and there are instances of the students leaving the state in search of livelihood.