BENGALURU: The state government has extended Dasara holidays for government and aided schools till October 18 to complete the ongoing Socio-Economic and Educational Survey being conducted by the Karnataka Backward Classes Commission since September 22.
Though the survey was expected to be completed by Tuesday, October 7, it is still pending in many districts, forcing the extension, said Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who held a review meeting with officials on Tuesday.
The enumerators, majority of whom are school teachers, have been told to complete the survey by Deepavali (Naraka Chaturdashi) on October 20. In Bengaluru, hardly 36% of the survey has been done and each enumerator has to cover 15 houses per day, he said.
After the meeting, the CM told reporters that the survey has been completed in some districts, while pending in some others. For example, in Koppal district, 97% of the survey work is complete, while in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi, it is around 60%. The progress is not as per expectation, he said.
‘Survey being conducted by 1.2 lakh teachers, 40,000 government staff’
The CM pointed out that on Monday, the education department issued an order after consulting with the Backward Classes Commission on extending the survey duration. The commission is conducting the survey and the government is supporting it financially and providing staff, including enumerators. The survey is being conducted by 1.2 lakh teachers and 40,000 government staff, he added.
The teachers’ association sought ten more days to complete the survey, and that is the reason the government has extended holidays for government and aided schools till October 18 (Saturday) and insisted that the survey be completed by before Naraka Chaturdashi (October 20). For pre-university, mid-term exams are going on, and teachers involved in the exam work have been exempted, he said.
On the survey in Bengaluru, he said that as of Tuesday, 36% has been completed. Over 21,000 enumerators, including 6,700 teachers, are taking part, he said. Bengaluru has 46 lakh houses and each enumerator has to cover 10-15 houses per day. “Senior officials have said the survey will be completed before Deepavali. Till October 20, there will be eight working days and four government holidays. I have directed them to complete the survey work within 12 days. The government will take action against those who deliberately miss the survey work or hesitate to take part in it,” he said.
Three enumerators died during the survey work. “Rs 20 lakh compensation will be paid to family members of each deceased,” he added. On reasons behind the delay in completion, he said the survey started in Bengaluru on October 4. “Only four days of the survey has been done. In other districts, there were some technical snags and in Bengaluru too, there were issues,” he said.
Teachers will take special classes, says Shivakumar
Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said the teachers’ association informed the government that to make up for the classes missed due to holiday extension, the teachers will take special classes or conduct an extra one hour of classes every day. “They have given it in writing. None of the students will face any issues,” he added. While the CM said 36% of the survey has been completed in Bengaluru, the DCM said it is 25%. “People in Bengaluru should cooperate with this survey. The public can also participate in this survey online,” he said.
