‘Students belonging to SCs, STs cannot be denied admission on the pretext of fee’

Welfare Committee Chairman emphasizes educational opportunities for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, urges proper utilization of welfare funds for upliftment.

Students belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes cannot be denied admission on the pretext of fee in government and private schools and colleges, Chairman of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Welfare Committee of the Legislative Council P.M. Narendra Swami has said.

He was chairing a meeting here on Wednesday to review the progress of various schemes and programmes being implemented by various departments for the welfare of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in Kalaburagi, Yadgir and Bidar districts.

He asked School Development Monitoring Committees to encourage students from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes communities in taking admissions in government schools. He said that more attention should be given for providing quality education and addressing infrastructure issues by raising funds locally, apart from government grants.

As students in government schools find it difficult to compete with students in private schools, the schemes meant for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes should be utilised to address the lack of infrastructure and for appointing guest teachers for providing quality education to the deprived sections.

If the poor and the marginalised sections are deprived of educational opportunities, it leads to social evils and the unemployment rate remains stagnant, Mr. Swamy said.

He said that the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department should formulate a programme according to the population of a particular area. The SCP-TSP funds allocated for the welfare of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes communities should be utilized properly for the upliftment of the deprived sections.

Mr. Swamy stressed the need for taking up awareness programmes in rural parts to eradicate the Devadasi system, a practice under which girls are dedicated to temples.