Atishi turns spotlight on ‘world-class’ govt. schools in Delhi; BJP dismisses her claims

Education Minister Atishi highlights AAP government's construction of 22,711 new classrooms in Delhi, transforming academic landscape.

Education Minister Atishi on Thursday said the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government has built 22,711 new classrooms in Delhi since 2015. Claiming that the AAP dispensation has transformed the city’s academic landscape, she said 14 new schools are under construction in the city. Speaking at a press conference, Ms. Atishi said government schools faced severe shortcomings, including shortages of classrooms, blackboards, power supply and washrooms, before AAP came to power in Delhi.

“In 2015, there were a total of 24,000 classrooms. So many governments came but could build only 24,000 classrooms since Independence. But Arvind Kejriwal’s government built 22,711 rooms in just nine years. The government not only built classrooms but also made the infrastructure of its schools world- class.”

Additionally, 1,541 new rooms are being built in Delhi government schools and infrastructure expansion is going on across schools from Rohini and Sunder Nagri to Dwarka, the Minister added.

Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said the government’s claim of constructing 22,711 classrooms was misleading, as it did not specify how many old classrooms were demolished and replaced with new ones and how many rooms were newly built.

“Education Minister Atishi is a magician of words who showcases the construction of a few rooms as her success in education while the results of Classes 10 and 12 in Delhi government schools continue to decline,” the Delhi BJP chief said. Attacking the AAP government, Mr. Sachdeva said, “More than half the schools in Delhi are functioning without principals and over 30% of the teaching positions are vacant. While Science is not being taught in more than 750 of the 1,030 Delhi government schools, Commerce is not taught in over 500 schools, depriving poor students of a good education.”