Anbumani urges T.N. govt to improve infrastructure, increase number of teachers in primary, middle schools

Anbumani Ramadoss urges State government to improve infrastructure and increase teachers in schools for higher student enrolment.

Pattali Makkal Katchi president Anbumani Ramadoss on Thursday urged the State government to take steps to improve infrastructure in government primary and middle schools and increase the number of teachers to ensure higher student enrolment.

In a statement, he said the State government had set a target to enroll five lakh students in government primary and middle schools. However, nearly 55 days after the commencement of the admissions in these schools only 1.5 lakh students have enrolled. “There are a total of 31,336 government and government-aided primary and middle schools under the purview of the Department of Elementary Education. If only 1.5 lakh students have been enrolled across all these schools, only five students have been admitted per school on an average. It reflects the extent of public reception towards these schools,” he said.

“The total strength in these schools stands at 25.5 lakhs – an average 81 students per school. In contrast, the 4,498 private schools in Tamil Nadu have a total student strength of 30.6 lakhs – an average of 680 students per school. This clearly highlights the disparity between government and private schools,” he said.

According to him, the main reasons for poor enrollment in government schools are inadequate infrastructure and a shortage of teachers. The State government should increase the number of teachers and improve the infrastructure in these schools to ensure higher enrolment, he added.