Enrollment in Karnataka government schools at 14-year high

Enrollment of children at government schools for the academic year 2020-21 has seen its biggest increase in the last 14 years, according to the state Department of Primary and Secondary Education.

As many as 90,000 children have enrolled at government schools this year, said Primary Education Minister S Suresh Kumar, who was addressing a Kannada Rajyotsava event organised by the Department of Public Instruction on Sunday.

"Admissions at government schools have seen their biggest increase in the last 14 years. During the Covid-19 pandemic, families from economically weaker sections have turned towards government schools. This is a silver lining which has also increased our hopes," he said.

Officials said that the total number of children in government schools has reached 42.16 lakh as against 41.26 lakh last year.

The development has also broken the streak of negative growth seen over the last few years. The total number of students in government schools has been falling significantly over the last few years, as it came down by 1.47 lakh in 2019-20 and by 1.83 lakh in 2018-19.

Meanwhile, the minister also said that the state government was working for the development of the Kannada language at all levels.

"The pandemic cannot steal the state government's commitment to Kannada. The government has taken stringent measures for the implementation of the Compulsory Kannada Learning Act 2017 at all schools including private schools affiliated to other boards," said Suresh Kumar.

"The government has started bilingual schools where both Kannada and English medium will be offered. This is to find a solution for the global challenges which our children are facing," he added.

The minister said NCERT textbooks of PU courses would be translated into Kannada for the benefit of students from the current academic year.