5000 Government Schools to Be Shut Down in UP

New Delhi: The BJP government in Uttar Pradesh, led by Adityanath, is preparing to shut down 5,000 government schools. The plan is to merge UP schools that have fewer than 50 students with other schools.

Of the approximately 1.40 lakh government primary and upper primary schools in UP, over 29,000 have 50 or fewer students. These schools currently employ around 89,000 teachers.

In Lucknow alone, over 300 of the 1,618 schools are set to be merged. This move is expected to significantly increase the distance between students and schools.Opposition parties have come forward against the policy, which they say will affect the education of marginalised communities.

Sarbani Sarkar, a central committee member of the All India Democratic Women's Association, said the BJP government has failed to ensure basic education. She added that through the National Education Policy, the BJP is privatising the education sector and closing government schools under the pretext of merging them.

Samajwadi Party leader and MP Akhilesh Yadav said schools are being shut down with the foresight that education could become a stronghold of resistance against the BJP. He also alleged that the schools targeted are mostly those located in booths where the BJP received fewer votes.