Something promising is unfolding in Karnataka’s education sector, especially focusing on improving government schools across the state. A small, but significant beginning has been made: the inauguration of the ‘Namma Shaale Namma Javabdari’ (‘Our School, Our Responsibility’) initiative, launched by the Education & Literacy Department on Wednesday.
It is set to function within the corporate social responsibility (CSR) framework laid by the state government, wherein every private school in the state will be expected to adopt government schools and provide guidance toward their development for a period of four to five years.
While inaugurating the initiative, CM DK Shivakumar requested private schools to integrate children from rural government schools with their own students, provide them with quality education, and help them succeed in life.
Karnataka has a total of 46,757 government schools. The initial plan for this initiative targets 1,000 government schools.The next step is to link a total of 2,000 government schools with private institutions. As part of the plan, Shivakumar said,6,000 gram panchayats have been categorized into three divisions from which government schools are expected to be selected by the private schools.
The responsibility for choosing the means of assisting the government schools rests with the private schools themselves, and the CM assured that the state government will not “dictate” the capacity of any private school to assist, nor will it “take a single paisa” from them.
Shivakumar said the state government’s focus lies categorically on children from Karnataka’s rural demographics –excluding Bengaluru -as that is where reforms and assistance for the government schools are needed the most.
This is a welcome initiative, as it is expected to improve the conditions of government schools and people’s perceptions of them. Government schools more often than not receive a “thumbs-down” when compared with private schools, which are more secure with finances for maintaining their infrastructure.
It is not surprising that a persistent tendency exists among rural parents to send their children to private schools, spending more, rather than sending them to the significantly more affordable government schools.
The adverse perceptions about government schools are not without reasons. Data shared by the state government and a report by the Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) indicate that about 63% of government-managed schools lack internet access, placing them at a massive disadvantage compared to private schools; about 81% do not have separate toilets tailored for ‘Children With Special Needs’; 2,740 government schools have no toilets exclusively for boys or girls, while 170 schools have no toilets at all; at least 2% face acute basic shortages like lack of drinking water; and 1,052 run without electricity.
Government schools especially in North Karnataka are the worst affected with an estimated 60% struggling with poor classroom infrastructure or damaged buildings requiring major repairs.
Citizen platforms like Namma Shale have flagged collapsed ceilings, cracked walls, broken doors, and water leaks in hundreds of government schools. Many of them run without playgrounds or proper kitchen facilities for mid-day meals.
The shocking part is the severe staff and teacher shortage. Many schools face vacant permanent teaching positions, forcing them to rely on temporary or guest teachers – all pointing to an interrupted teaching system. Furthermore, even in schools with adequate teaching staff, teachers are deployed for non-teaching tasks by the government – like election duties or the ongoing Special Intensive Revision – which causes disruptions and deprives children of their regular teachers for long periods.
It is not surprising that academic assessments point to severe persistent learning gaps, characterized by rote rather than conceptual learning.
Also, budgetary constraints and low student enrolment/dropouts have already caused several small government schools in rural areas to merge or shut down, forcing children to travel longer distances or move to costlier private institutions, if any are closer.
Although this is a well-intended and refreshing step to improve government schools in the state, given the existing problems plaguing them, shouldn’t the state government be responsible for ensuring infrastructure, staff recruitment and their well-being—especially considering this CSR initiative lasts only four to five years with each school? What happens to them after that? Besides, the appeal to “integrate children” from rural government schools with those in private schools needs attention as the former would be suddenly exposed to newer influences.
Education is a delicate issue, and in a welfare state, it is a fundamental human and constitutional right, provided under Article 21A of the Indian Constitution. This stresses the responsibility of the government to monitor this initiative, and not allow private endeavours to completely take over the process, however impressive and welcome it may be.