an>
Title: Need to include all schools of Assam under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan.
DR. ARUN KUMAR SARMA (LAKHIMPUR): Madam, I thank you for giving me this opportunity. I would like to draw the attention of the Government to the discriminatory utilization of central funds under the Ministry of Human Resource Development.
As you know, in Assam, there are many public schools and colleges which are established by the public and they are recognized by the Government. They are rendering their services for the last 20 years to 25 years. So far, these institutions are neither supported by the Government of Assam nor the Central grant is allotted to them. More than 50 per cent of the formal education in Assam is being covered by these public institutions which are not Government institutes. So, it is a clear discrimination. The performance of these schools and colleges is far more better than others. These are various level institutes like lower primary level, middle level, high school, higher secondary, junior colleges and degree colleges.
Therefore, I demand from the Government that all these educational institutions should be covered by the Central funds under various schemes like Sarva-Siksha Abhiyan, Mid-Day Meal Scheme, etc. They should also get the University Grants Commission funds because these colleges are also deprived of these grants. The Union Government should draw up a special scheme to fund these institutes which are really supplementing the efforts for fulfilling the constitutional obligation of the Government of India as also the Government of Assam of rendering free education to all.