Defined: What’s Haryana’s Cheerag scheme for EWS college students?
Senior politicians and lecturers’ our bodies in Haryana have raised questions on the federal government’s Cheerag scheme, which was just lately launched to supply “free schooling” to Economically Weaker Part (EWS) college students of presidency colleges in “price range” non-public colleges.
The Indian Categorical explains the Cheerag scheme, its targets, and the issues raised.
What’s Haryana’s Cheerag scheme?
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar’s authorities just lately launched the “Chief Minister Equal Schooling Aid, Help and Grant (Cheerag)” scheme. It was launched instead of the same scheme launched by Bhupinder Singh Hooda’s authorities in 2007 beneath Rule 134 A of the Haryana Faculty Schooling Guidelines, 2003.
Underneath the Cheerag scheme, authorities faculty college students whose dad and mom have an annual verified revenue of lower than Rs 1.8 lakh can enroll in non-public colleges from Class II to XII. The federal government will reimburse Rs 700 per pupil from Lessons II to V, Rs 900 per pupil from Lessons VI to VIII, and Rs 1,100 per pupil from Lessons IX to XII.
Response to the Cheerag scheme
As many as 533 “price range” non-public colleges – largely in villages and small cities — utilized to supply seats to EWS college students beneath the Cheerag scheme. Nonetheless, the authorities discovered solely 381 colleges eligible because of totally different technical causes.
These 381 non-public colleges provided 24,987 seats for EWS college students from authorities colleges. Nonetheless, just one,665 college students have most popular to go for the scheme, which is simply 6.66 per cent of the full provided seats.
Officers instructed The Indian Categorical many college students have chosen towards non-public colleges because of the numerous services provided at authorities colleges; the gap of personal colleges; and since ‘good’ non-public colleges haven’t participated within the scheme.
What are the issues over Haryana’s Cheerag scheme?
Haryana Vidyalaya Adhyapak Sangh, a physique of presidency faculty lecturers, will not be impressed with the Cheerag scheme and has already staged protests towards it throughout the state. The union leaders have apprehensions that the scheme could also be geared toward encouraging non-public colleges at the price of authorities colleges.
Former president of the union, Wazir Singh stated, “As an alternative of providing free schooling in non-public colleges, the federal government ought to strengthen infrastructure at authorities colleges and fill the vacant posts of lecturers. As per our data, there are almost 85,000 lecturers, together with visitor lecturers, in authorities colleges, whereas almost 50,000 posts are mendacity vacant.”
“If the federal government continues to reimburse non-public colleges in lieu of admission of presidency faculty college students, in the future, the federal government colleges will flip empty,” Singh added.
He additionally claimed as many as 90 per cent of the scholars of presidency colleges fall beneath the Cheerag scheme which is supposed for these with dad and mom who’ve an annual revenue of Rs 1.8 lakh.
How has the problem dominated social media?
In a video clip which has been shared extensively on Twitter, a girl whereas referring to Haryana’s scheme says, “If a pupil goes to the federal government faculty, then she or he has to pay Rs 500 month-to-month, whereas if the scholar opts for a non-public faculty, she or he will get Rs 1,100 month-to-month from the federal government.”
A number of senior leaders of the Opposition, together with Aam Aadmi Get together Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh and Haryana Congress MLA Kiran Choudhry, have raised questions on the intentions of the BJP-JJP authorities whereas referring to the video clipping.
Nonetheless, state schooling division officers say schooling in Haryana’s authorities colleges is sort of free and the lady within the video clip appears to be speaking in regards to the authorities’s ‘Mannequin Sanskriti Faculties’, the place a “nominal price” is charged from the scholars.
In response to the federal government, some colleges have been developed as ‘Mannequin Sanskriti Faculties’ to convey qualitative enchancment in schooling.
Officers additionally say that Rs 1,100 is not going to be given to the scholars for choosing the scheme, however will likely be reimbursed to the non-public colleges for providing admission to EWS college students.
What does the federal government say?
A senior officer instructed The Indian Categorical, “The Cheerag scheme is non-compulsory; those that had been prepared to go to personal colleges have gone. Those that wished to remain in authorities colleges can proceed their research there. The scholars might need had restricted choices, since they may solely go to these colleges that provided the seats. If the scholars want to proceed in authorities colleges, it speaks nicely for the schooling division too.”
CM Khattar just lately stated, “From Lessons I to XII, no price is charged at authorities colleges. From Lessons I to VIII, uniforms, textbooks, workbooks, stationery, faculty luggage and lunch are being supplied freed from price. In English medium colleges, bag-free Mannequin Sanskriti Faculties, there’s a provision of free schooling for college students whose dad and mom’ annual verified revenue is lower than Rs 1.80 lakh. Nominal month-to-month contribution is taken from the kids of households having an annual revenue above Rs 1.80 lakh within the state.”
Officers additionally declare the Cheerag scheme is supposed just for a number of years, until a scheme beneath the Proper to Schooling (RTE) Act replaces it. The RTE Act has provisions to supply admission as much as 25 per cent of personal colleges’ power to EWS households and Scheduled Castes for Lessons I to VIII with none bills. Underneath the RTI Act, admissions might be performed solely in Class 1 in non-public colleges to get the aid of free schooling.
