Nilgiris Collector denies plans to close primary schools with low student strength

Nilgiris District denies plans to close 85 government schools with fewer than 15 students, aiming to improve education quality.

The Nilgiris District Collector Lakshmi Bhavya Tanneeru has denied allegations that the district administration plans to shut down nearly 85 government primary and elementary schools that had a strength of fewer than 15 students.

Teachers and headmasters of several government schools in the Nilgiris told The Hindu that during a review meeting last month, they were informed of plans to close down schools with less than 15 students unless efforts were taken to increase enrolment for the next academic year. “There were also threats to close schools with fewer than ten students, particularly those with children of migrant laborers. School Education Department officials believe that these students are unlikely to remain in school due to their parents’ seasonal work schedules,” said a headmaster.

P. Jeyaseelan, the Nilgiris district secretary of the Tamil Nadu Primary School Teachers Federation, said that headmasters were given time till April 2025 to increase student strength or risk closure . Such a move would severely impact students from marginalised communities since many of these schools were located are located near Adivasi settlements or in villages populated by other marginalised groups, Mr. Jayaseelan said, adding, “Closing these schools and making students nearby schools nearby could mean that they dropout altogether,” he said.

According to officials, 85 primary schools in the Nilgiris have fewer than 15 students, while 50 schools have fewer than ten students.

District Elementary Education Officer, G. Santhosh, denied the claims, adding there were no such plans. District Collector Lakshmi Bhavya Tanneeru said that the exercise to ascertain students’ strength in primary schools was to depute teachers to schools in the district more effectively. Some schools with fewer students have more than the required number of teachers, some of whom could be reassigned to schools with higher student strengths. “The claims that the district administration was planning on closing government schools is false,” she said.