SDMC body seeks better supplies, opposes school merger plan

Hubballi : The District School Development and Monitoring Committee (SDMC) Association on Tuesday urged the state govt to provide quality shoes, socks and study materials to students of govt schools, alleging that supplies currently being distributed are substandard. Addressing reporters, Veeresh Kubasad, SDMC president of Govt Primary School, Annigeri, said several schools in the district were yet to receive complete sets of textbooks despite midterm examinations approaching. He also pointed to a lack of functional toilets and access to clean drinking water in many schools and sought immediate intervention from the education department. Shankar Kotur of SDMC Govt School, Tarihal, alleged that scholarships disbursed through the social welfare, backward classes welfare and minority welfare departments had been delayed for the past two to three years. He claimed that allocations meant for poor and middle-class students were being reduced every year. The association also opposed the govt's proposal to merge low-enrolment schools, arguing that the move amounted to an indirect closure of schools. Long distances between institutions, it said, could discourage parents from sending children to school and lead to higher dropout rates. The government would be responsible for any adverse impact on students arising from the policy, it added. Stay updated with the latest Hubballi news. Download the TOI App.