Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president and Malkajigiri MP A. Revanth Reddy has alleged that Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao is going ahead with a steely resolve to distance education from the poor including closing schools in the name of COVID-19 spread when there is no fatality with infection in schools.
In an informal chat with newspersons here on Tuesday he observed that the Chief Minister was wilfully misleading people with decisions such as setting up a Cabinet Sub-Committee on controlling fee in schools instead of implementing the Right to Education (RTE) Act in letter and spirit under which 25% of admissions would go the poor without any donations and exorbitant fee.
The only response from the government on the implementation of RTE so far had been that it was implementing KG to PG free education policy, the TPCC president said and sought to know the rationale behind the government decision to offer English medium instruction from the next academic year when there were no teachers and no recruitment for long.
Criticising the government decision not to re-open schools after Sankranti vacation, Mr. Revanth Reddy sought to know the logic behind closure of schools when there was no instance of mortality among students infected in schools and allowing restriction-free functioning of pubs and restaurants when there were fatalities among those infected in pubs.
The education system, from schools to universities, in Telangana was incapacitated under the TRS regime, he alleged and said allocation of funds for education was expenditure in the view of the Chief Minister while it was investment from the point of view of society.
That was the reason the Chief Minister was denying education opportunities to the poor and instead giving them sheep and buffaloes, he observed.
On the chances of open debate with Telangana Rashtra Samithi working president and Minister K.T. Rama Rao on agriculture, IT, Industries in the State, Mr. Revanth Reddy said KTR might not participate in debate with criminals but he was ready for the same with criminals and cheats too.
The TPCC chief also expressed disappointment with Chinna Jeeyar Swamy ashram for sending him invitation for the unveiling of a Ramanujaswamy statue and a temple with a real estate company employee instead of an ashram functionary. He observed that real estate businessmen alongside Chinna Jeeyar Swamy would only create doubts among people although he had huge respect for the seer.