JOIN USExcerpts of an interaction with Putte Gowda.
How come you are supporting the closure of schools?
Schools should be need-based. I am not against providing Kannada medium education at elementary level.
Every child should learn its mother tongue. But if there are hardly any students in a school, it will demoralise both teachers and students. It is better to merge smaller schools with bigger ones.
Many Kannada organisations and politicians are protesting the move.
Those who protest by playing tamate (drum) and give interviews to television channels should do some soul searching. Are they ready to send their children to Kannada medium schools? Will children residing in Sadashivnagar in Bangalore go to Kannada medium schools?
Definitely not. Then why do you expect a villager to send his children to a Kannada medium school? There is no level playing in the education field. Why only Bangalore should grow as elite people’s centre while other places are denied of opportunities for education?
We are trying to make Kannada medium schools in my constituency attractive by providing better infrastructure. There is no point in giving incentives like bicycles or mid-day meal to retain students.
Education system itself should be attractive. Crores of rupees are being spent by the Centre and the state governments on public schools. There are several instances where teachers have inflated student strength in ateendence registers to ensure that schools are not closed and they can also retain their jobs.
Nowadays villagers do not have more than one or two kids and hence are prepared to take trouble for ensuring quality education for their wards.
Officials say besides the transport cost, Rs 1,500 has to be spent on each student to make him/her shift to a bigger school. How do you manage to get the funds?
We are tapping many sources including panchayats, private organisations and philanthropists.
We will get sponsors. MML has come forward to build compound walls for some schools.
Do you think Channarayapatna can serve as a model to other places in the State?
I can’t change the rules of the government overnight. Policy decisions have to be taken by the Cabinet and legislature. We are just experimenting. If the model becomes a success, then others can follow it. We will adopt the new approach from November 14. The DDPI and BEO of Hassan are active.
Instead of having schools in each and every hobli, I am of the opinion that school complexes spread over three to five acres should be set up in bigger villages.