Revanth Unveils Education Revamp

Hyderabad: The new academic year in Telangana, starting Monday, will be one where state-run schools will literally turn a new leaf with the government introducing a slew of reforms in its approach to student welfare, aimed at making going to schools and colleges an activity to look forward to.

As part of reforms, Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, who also holds the education portfolio, has decided to supply quality uniforms to the students, branded shoes, socks, neck ties, and belts. All students in government schools and residential schools — including Kasturba Gandhi, BC, SC, ST, and minority residential institutions — will get bedding material.

This is for the first time that steps have been taken to ensure that the kits for students in government schools are made with high-quality materials. These kits include uniforms, as well as white shoes and white socks to students across all government schools — unlike the previous practice of restricting them only to students in BC residential schools.

For students in BC, SC, ST, and minority residential schools, Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas, and urban residential schools, comprehensive kits – that will include a belt, ID card, tie, school bag, shoes (black and white, with socks), bedding materials, a plate, glass, bowl, a trunk box, PT dress, night dress, and a tracksuit – will be provided.

Also for the first time, the government has decided to provide tracksuits and nightwear to students in minority residential schools. Similarly, students in government schools and model schools will receive black shoes and belts from the government for the first time.

The government, this year, centralised procurement of materials to be distributed to the students following the previous experience led by the school education department and the various residential school societies which procured and distributed these supplies independently, resulting in inconsistencies and occasional errors.

This comprehensive overhaul of supplies, and their quality, to students reflects the Chief Minister’s approach to viewing any spending on education not as an expense but an investment for future generations, officials said. In all, the government is spending `687.78 crore for the supplies, the officials added.

Considering quality inconsistencies in the past, this year, the government is procuring 2.97 crore metres of fabric to provide two sets of uniforms to each of the 27 lakh students. While Mafatlal Company is supplying 2.41 crore metres, the Telangana Handloom Weavers Cooperative Society (TGSCO) is supplying 55.32 lakh metres of the fabric.

The uniforms will be provided in light blue, dark blue, white, plain maroon, and maroon checkered fabric, the officials said. While day scholars will wear light blue tops and dark blue bottoms, students in residential schools will wear maroon-check tops and maroon bottoms. Keeping in view the needs of girl students, the officials said they will received a skirt, a Punjabi dress, and a chunni (dupatta). Two pairs of uniforms will be given to each student.

Women's self-help groups – which between them can produce between 75,000 and one lakh uniforms per day –will stitch the uniforms, at `75 per uniform which will convert into more than Rs.40 crore in earnings.

The Chief Minister, officials said, has also decided that the around 2 lakh students in junior colleges will receive bags, belts, ties, black shoes, and socks, adding that textbooks and notebooks were already supplied to government schools and residential schools and that their distribution will be completed in a week. Besides, for the first time, students in government junior colleges will be provided breakfast.

Rebutting allegations of wrong doing by Opposition parties in the purchase of supplies, officials said all procurements were conducted through a transparent national e-tendering process. Numerous irregularities had come to light in the processes adopted during the previous BRS government in procurement and distribution of uniforms and other supplies. A group of syndicates exploited the system by supplying substandard fabrics and materials to make huge profits, and the present system eliminates any scope for such actions, officials said.