Claims of schools being shut baseless, misleading: Edu dept

Raipur: Terming them baseless and misleading, the school education department dismissed the claims by ‘certain organisations and individuals' that thousands of schools would close due to rationalisation.

Amid ongoing protests by teacher organisations over rationalisation, the department clarified that the state govt's rationalisation process aims to improve education quality and optimise resource utilisation, not to halt any child's education.

Only 166 out of a total of 10,463 schools in the state will be merged.

Among these, 133 rural schools have fewer than 10 students and another school within a one-kilometre radius. Similarly, 33 urban schools have fewer than 30 students and another school within a 500-metre radius.

These 166 schools are being merged to provide better education, ensuring children's studies are not affected. The remaining 10,297 schools will continue to operate, with only necessary administrative and academic adjustments. School buildings will remain in use, and teachers will be available where required, they said.

Department officials said that it is important to clarify that ‘merger' and ‘closure' of schools are different. A merger means integrating nearby schools to utilise resources more effectively. The objective is to provide better education to children, not to close schools, they added. The Education Department has urged people to be cautious of rumours.