In what would sound to be a major move to draw more students towards education, Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy announced that free electricity is going to be provided to as many as 30,000 government schools. This forms part of a larger policy of infrastructure augmentation in the educational sector, since electricity has turned out to be one of the extremely important factors to do meaningful learning today, mainly for running the numerous computers and other educational gadgets.

Reddy relayed the message on reliable power supply during the recent convention of newly promoted teachers. He said schools had been disconnected from the electrical companies due to unpaid bills. He questioned the rationale behind giving free power to farmers and poor consuming 200 units while the schools were ignored, saying, “When free power is given to farmers and 200 units are provided to the poor, why cannot free electricity be provided in schools where Telangana’s future is built?” The intent behind this direction is to thereby reduce the financial burden on schools so that the students therein have all the requisite resources for pursuing their education.

Declining Enrollment

He also pointed out that two lakh fewer students were admitted to government schools than in the previous year. He said this had happened due to a variety of reasons such as the closure of some schools and the parents’ preference for private schools—with many of them for educating the students in English, as it is considered more prestigious. The Chief Minister appealed to the parents, particularly in rural areas, to reconsider their decision and make sending the children to government schools a matter of self-respect .

School Budgets

On the financial commitment, he revealed that the state government has so far spent over Rs 21,000 crore on education, which is 7.3 percent of the state budget. The government had proposed to spend Rs 30,000 crore, but unfortunately could not do so as it had to keep money for other commitments made in the election manifesto. The financing support reflects the commitment of the government toward enhancing quality and infrastructure in education .

Conclusion

The decision to provide free electricity to government schools is one more such move in the exercise of ensuring access to quality education for all students across the state of Telangana. It is a step meant to create an atmosphere where education can take its natural course toward the molding of a better tomorrow for the youth, tackling two important deficiencies: infrastructural needs and the falling enrollment rates.