School admissions touch only 50% in Karnataka, final data by July 10

BENGALURU: Karnataka has seen just half the total number of students being admitted in state board schools, across managements -- government, aided, unaided and others. Admissions touched just 50.37 per cent of the target of 1,05,51,951 students, according to Department of Public Instruction (DPI) statistics. 
DPI Commissioner Anbu Kumar told TNIE that by July 10, complete updation of data is expected. The state is estimated to have about 30,000 out-of-school children, and one can gauge how many have come back to school and the reasons they have stayed out. Schools have been asked to feed the admission data in the portal, so that headteachers are aware of students dropping out of school.  

He said a video conference was held on Monday with all stakeholders, to ensure the data is fed at the earliest, although the deadline was June 30.General secretary of Associated Managements of Primary and Secondary Schools in Karnataka  Shashi Kumar told TNIE that admission numbers by the department were inflated. Students were being approached by the department to get admitted to government schools, if they hadn’t enrolled in private schools, and this leads to ghost admissions as students would have their data in one school, and without issue of TC, would be admitted to a second (government) school.