CHENNAI: The Railway Board has once again mooted a proposal to shut down schools run by zonal railways which don’t have a significant number of students on their rolls. Those schools with substantial number of students may be merged with Kendriya Vidyalayas, the board said.
In a letter issued on September 28, Mahesh Kumar Meena, joint director (establishment) in Railway Board wrote to zonal railways to assess schools managed by them.
This is in line with the board's instructions which stipulate that ‘efforts should be made to progressively close down existing railway schools matching the expansion of KVs and other nonrailway schools.’ Eventually, railway schools would be transferred to Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS).
This is being done to optimise the utilisation of resources spent on running schools, the letter stated. “A quota for children of railway employees might be given in KVs,” the letter stated.
The letter has asked zonal railways to identify railway schools which can be handed over to KVs and also close down schools where the enrolment is small and where it is not feasible to merge it with another institution.
Southern Railway runs seven schools (six of which are in Tamil Nadu), which has a total enrolment of 2627. Amount allotted to them is around Rs 20 lakh. These schools are in Perambur, Arakkonam, Madurai, Tiruchirapalli, Erode, Pothanur and Palakkad.
M Suryaprakash, working general secretary of Southern Railway Employees Sangh (SRES), which is one of the unions representing employee issues, said that this was a move keeping in line with the Union government’s plan to privatise railways.
“Facilities like schools and hospitals were created by Railways for the benefit of its vast number of employees. It is the government’s responsibility to maintain and upgrade them, instead of shutting it down. Railway schools can offer some special railway related subjects that can help students prepare for a career in the organisation,” he said.
