The second Pinarayi Vijayan government has made problems in the general education sector more complicated, Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan has said.
He was speaking after inaugurating a three-day satyagraha organised by the Kerala Pradesh School Teachers’ Association (KPSTA) State committee in front of the Secretariat here on Wednesday.
Referring to the school mid-day meal row, Mr. Satheesan said those arguing about the lack of Union government funds were destroying a scheme that was functioning well in the State for years.
Alleging that the government was doing away with teacher posts citing technicalities, he said it was handing over public education to monopolies on a platter.
Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala who delivered the keynote address alleged that Minister for General Education V. Sivankutty was not familiar with the fundamental problems of the General Education sector. The Minister was turning into a destroyer of the public education sector. The government, he said, should be prepared to address these problems.
KPSTA president K. Abdul Majeed presided over the event. Chandy Oommen, MLA; Congress leaders Shanimol Usman and Bindu Krishna; and KPSTA general secretary P.K. Aravindan and treasurer Vattappara Anilkumar; were present.
The KPSTA protest was held to raise a slew of demands, including distribution of arrears of mid-day meal scheme funds urgently, enhancing the mid-day meal funds, distribution of scale and arrears to primary head teachers, distribution of dearness allowance arrears, and restoring the teacher-student ratio in Classes 9 and 10 to 1:40.
