VISAKHAPATNAM: Tension prevailed in Visakhapatnam on Tuesday as several YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) leaders were detained by the police while they were protesting the relocation of students from the Marikavalasa Tribal Gurukulam.
Former deputy chief minister Peedika Rajanna Dora, Pushpa Sreevani and former minister Pasupulleti Balaraju were among those taken into custody near Marikavalasa. Former MLAs Tynala Vijay Kumar, Chintalapudi Venkat Ramayya and Sobha Hymavathi, YSRCP city president KK Raju, East constituency coordinator Molli Apparao, Gajuwaka coordinator Tippala Deven Reddy, Nagendra and MLC Varudu Kalyani were also detained and taken to different police stations.
Pushpa Sreevani and Balaraju were intercepted by the police while they were on their way to meet parents protesting the shifting of students from the Marikavalasa school.
The controversy centres on the government's decision to convert the AP Tribal Welfare Residential Boys' English Medium School at Marikavalasa into a Centre of Excellence (CoE) offering specialised coaching for NEET and IIT entrance examinations. The school, which has been functioning since 2004, had around 480 students, including Class 10 students.
The students were shifted midway through the academic year to residential institutions at Sabbavaram, Srikrishnapuram, Devarapalli, Parvathipuram and other locations. Parents have opposed the move, demanding that the school continue at the Marikavalasa campus until the students complete their education.
A resolution adopted by the Parents Committee was submitted to the authorities, but officials proceeded with the relocation amid police deployment. Around 70 students have reportedly obtained Transfer Certificates following the developments.
Students and parents have staged protests over the issue, including a demonstration outside the Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA) office in Paderu. Talks with officials have so far failed to resolve the issue.
Marikavalasa is among four Tribal Welfare Gurukulams selected for conversion into Centres of Excellence in collaboration with private institutions. The other three are located at Meghadrigedda in Visakhapatnam, Tadikonda in Guntur and Kota in Nellore. The move is expected to affect nearly 2,000 students across the four institutions.
The YSRCP condemned the coalition government's decision to relocate tribal students in the middle of the academic year and criticised the deployment of police against leaders seeking to support the protesting families.
The party said improving educational infrastructure should not come at the cost of disrupting the education of existing students against the wishes of their parents. It demanded that the government reconsider the decision, ensure uninterrupted education for the affected students at their original school and disclose the terms and conditions under which the Gurukulams were being converted into CoEs in collaboration with private entities.
The YSRCP also condemned the detention of Pushpa Sreevani and Balaraju and urged the government to engage with the affected tribal families instead of using police force to contain their protests.
