Poor enrolment: 433 schools to be merged in Ganjam
Berhampur: As many as 433 primary and upper primary schools in Ganjam district will get merged with nearby bigger schools due to poor enrolment.
This includes 425 primary and 8 upper primary schools.
The government has asked the district authorities to complete the merger before the schools reopen so that the students can adjust comfortably in new lead schools. “The process has already begun in the district after the government approved the proposal,” district education officer (DEO) Amulya Kumar Pradhan said.
Sources said since there were no students in the schools, identified to be merged with nearby schools, only documents would be handed over by the concerned headmaster or headmistress. Sources added that the building of such schools would be utilized in consultation with the concerned panchayats.
The government has decided to merge upper primary schools with the high schools functioning on the same campus for proper management and utilization of intellectual resources of both the institutions.
Patrapur block will see 42 upper primary schools getting merged — the highest — followed by Bhanjanagar (41), Digapahandi (34), Chikiti (32), Jagannath Prasad (27), Kukudakhandi (25) and Belaguntha (22). Only five schools will be clubbed in Sorada block.
However, several villagers of different blocks have strongly opposed the move to merge the schools. They are not in favour of shutting schools in their respective villages.
The residents of Chasa Kanamana village in Chhatrapur block recently staged a dharna against the closure of a primary school in the village. “We demand that the government reconsider its decision,” S Chakrapani Reddy, a local sarpanch, said. The villagers were convinced after the block education officer (BEO) assured them to bring the matter to the district administration’s notice.
“We have received several complaints against the merger. The district administration will take a final call after reassessing students’ enrollment in the schools,” the DEO said.