Gujarat: Shortfall of over 9k classrooms, 286 schools shut

Of the 33 districts in Gujarat, tribal-dominated Dahod tops the list with a shortfall of 1,087 classrooms, followed by Banaskantha with 662, Anand 596, Bhavnagar 506 and Bharuch with 496.

The Gujarat government on Monday informed the Assembly that there was a shortfall of over 9,405 classrooms in various government-run primary schools as on December 2020.

Only around five states have decided to open up schools, and almost all of them will allow only students from senior classes to attend. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

While responding to questions raised by Congress MLAs during Question Hour, Gujarat Education Minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama on Monday informed the House that these classrooms will be built at the earliest.

Of the 33 districts in Gujarat, tribal-dominated Dahod tops the list with a shortfall of 1,087 classrooms, followed by Banaskantha with 662, Anand 596, Bhavnagar 506 and Bharuch with 496.

Responding to a related question, Chudasama said 286 state-run primary schools were shut in the last two years, and students had been given admission in nearby schools.

Giving details about the mid-day meal scheme, the minister said the state government spends ₹4.97 on each student from Class I to V and ₹7.45 on those from Class VI to VIII.

He added that the government had increased the per head allocation by ₹0.49 for students of class I to V and ₹0.74 for those from Class VI to VII through a notification issued in May last year.