Private English primary schools are slowly taking the spaceof government primary schools in the city of Kolhapur.
Due to rise in number of private primary English mediumschools, a number of Kolhapur corporation’s primary schools have had to closedown. And the blame squarely rests on the negligence of the City Corporation ofthe Kolhapur.
Kolhapur Corporation’s 12 primary schools have been closeddown in the last 12 years. This has raised fears among the common man, who areconcerned about children of poor households. “Where will those who cannotafford to pay huge fees in English medium education go?” questions a concernedparent.
The Corporation’s primary education committee member’sconflict led to the closure of so many primary schools in the Kolhapur city.These schools operated in rented premises in the city. It is quiteunderstandable about those schools functioning from rented premises having toclose down. But it was quite baffling when education board has been closingdown schools running from their own premises. This has led to increase innumber of private primary English schools.
In few cases premises of the schools has been leased out tothe some other organizations. Few places were allotted for commercial purpose;for example Gandhi Vidhyamadir, Rangrao Salunkhe Vidhyamandir, Shala NumberPanch, Vichare Vidhyalay.
12 schools have been closed down in the last 12 years.According to some parents, primary education board and teachers wereresponsible for the present scene of the corporation’s primary schools.
In the last 2-3 years the corporation had stopped givingawards to private schools teachers. But this year a representative of theprivate school was a member of the education board. So when four teachers ofprivate English school were given awards it did not come as a big surprise.
Many of the corporation schools were also shut because thereis this belief in parents that education in English is quality education. “Tocontrol the closure of corporation schools, the corporation has begundistributing free books, uniforms and notebook. Some of the schools will alsobe converted into semi English,” said the mayor of the corporation city.
According to the BJP MLA, Chandrakant Dada Patil it is notonly the defeat of the corporation but also of the Congress party.
