BJP Alleges Mismanagement of Rs 1,050 Crore Shiksha Funds by TN Education Minister

Chennai, February 13 (IANS): Tamil Nadu BJP State President K. Annamalai has accused State School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh of mismanaging Rs 1,050 crore allocated by the Central Government for the Samagra Shiksha scheme.

Annamalai, in a statement, claimed the scheme, launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2018-19, aims to provide equitable and quality education to all children.

He alleged that despite receiving substantial funding, the Tamil Nadu government has failed to implement the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) curriculum as a separate subject in schools.

The BJP leader pointed out that the Central Government provided Rs 6.40 lakh for capital expenditure, Rs 15,000 for teachers’ salaries, and Rs 2.50 lakh for other expenses to establish ICT labs in schools.

Annamalai contrasted Tamil Nadu’s approach with states like Delhi, Telangana, and Rajasthan, where ICT has been incorporated as a distinct subject from Class VI onwards. He argued that integrating ICT into the science curriculum in Tamil Nadu undermines the scheme’s goal of nurturing ICT skills in students from an early age.

He further questioned the recruitment of volunteers from the ‘Illam Thedi Kalvi’ scheme as ICT instructors. Annamalai cited the lack of formal educational qualifications in computer science among these volunteers and asserted that this violates the Supreme Court’s 2008 guideline requiring computer science teachers to possess a B.Ed. degree.

Demanding transparency, Annamalai urged Education Minister Mahesh to provide a detailed account of the expenditures, including the number of schools with functional ICT labs and the rationale behind integrating ICT into the science curriculum. He emphasized the importance of ensuring that the Samagra Shiksha scheme is implemented in its true spirit.

This accusation comes after Annamalai’s previous claim on February 9 that Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin “spread a lie” regarding the allocation of funds under the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan. He criticized the Chief Minister and his administration for the state’s ranking at the bottom for numeracy and basic language proficiency.