“Deaths in Government Schools Infrastructure Need Urgent Attention”

• Tragic incidents occurred at Piplodi Government School in Rajasthan, leading to seven deaths and injuries.

• The incident has highlighted the state of government schools in Rajasthan, with over 70,000 schools serving nearly 84 lakh students.

• The Education Department estimates 8,000 schools are in poor condition, with Jhalawar school not among these.

• Despite ₹650 crore allocated in the past two State budgets for infrastructure improvement, inefficiencies in government have not significantly improved the situation.

• The tragedy in Rajasthan should serve as a wake-up call for India, given the current policy defocus on government-owned education institutions.

• The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 called for an immediate increase in spending on education, but this has not been a focus area.

• Policy thrusts have been more towards reducing government support, self-financing, and encouraging private sector contribution.

• Basic school education is a primary duty of the government, but the focus is more on pedagogy and non-formal teaching than infrastructure boost and teacher recruitment and training.