TS to enact law for regulating pvt school fee; approves Rs 7289 Cr for Mana Vooru Mana Badi

Hyderabad: Telangana cabinet has approved Rs 7289 crore `Mana Vooru Mana Badi scheme' to improve education and develop infrastructure in the government schools. The cabinet has also decided to make English a medium of instruction in government schools and enact law to regulate fees in private schools.

The cabinet discussed the resentment against the private educational institutions' fee structure. The cabinet decided to regulate the fee to make education affordable to the middle class.

The cabinet has decided to bring in a new Act to regulate fees in private schools, junior and degree colleges To study and prepare guidelines on these two issues, the State cabinet has constituted a Cabinet Sub Committee headed by Education Minister Sabita Indra Reddy. Ministers Koppula Eswar, T Srinivas Yadav, Niranjan Reddy, Jagadeeshwar Reddy, Harish Rao, Prashanth Reddy, Puvvada Ajay Kumar, E Dayakar Rao, KT Rama Rao will be the members of the Committee.

The state cabinet approved the Rs 7289 Crore Mana Vooru Mana Badi scheme for the comprehensive development of the government schools, basic infrastructure. The government has decided to implement the programme for 19,84,167 students from 26,065 government, local bodies schools.

As declared by Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao, programmes and measures would be taken to improve all the infrastructure facilities and offer qualitative education in the government institutions in the next two years. A sum of Rs 4,000 Crore has been earmarked for this initiative.

On CM's instructions, the ministers' team comprising Sabita Indrareddy, KTR, Harish Rao, E Dayakar Rao made several recommendations.

"Mana Vooru Mana Badi should be taken as a flagship programme and in three phases, in three years, increase the infrastructure facilities in the schools under the education department. In the first phase, the programme will be implemented in primary and secondary schools, which have the highest enrollment," the government said.

The government has decided to improve facilities and create new infrastructure. These include toilets with water facilities, electrification, supply of drinking water, furniture for teachers and students, painting of the school, major and minor repairs, green chalkboards, and others.

"To create these facilities Rs 7289.54 Crore is needed. In the first phases, Rs 3497.62 Crore for 9123 schools will be allocated. The district collectors will give the administrative sanction for these works. One agency can be selected to implement the programme per Mandal. School Management Committees will be formed to monitor and supervise the programme. The finance department would be the nodal agency to accumulate funds for the programme. School management committees would be relapsed funds in a phased manner," the government said.

Earlier, the cabinet had a lengthy discussion on the education Sector. The cabinet said since the government residential educational institutions are showing wonderful results. The cabinet said more and more students are joining these institutions from rural areas.

The cabinet felt that the parents in rural areas are ready to send their children to the government schools if medium of instruction is English.

The cabinet has also decided to put in an action plan to train teachers to impart education in English medium to the students at the primary level, to make the environment in the schools attractive for the children, keep the premises clean and tidy, improve the mid-day meal programme.

The cabinet also decided that the government should offer education on par with the corporate schools by offering qualitative English education and decided to prepare an action plan in this regard. The Cabinet has instructed the Education Department to make an action plan .