The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Thanjavur News : SSA has reduced rate of school dropouts: Collector

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jun 22, 2005

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Thanjavur

SSA has reduced rate of school dropouts: Collector

Special Correspondent

Plan to upgrade 15 primary schools in 2005-06

FIRST-HAND INFORMATION: The Thanjavur Collector, M. Veera Shanmugha Moni, interacting with school students during his inspection of SSA at Budalur on Tuesday. Photo: R. Shivaji Rao

THANJAVUR: The rate of dropouts from schools has come down considerably after the implementation of the Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) in the district, according to the Collector, M. Veera Shanmugha Moni.

The Collector inspected the construction of school buildings at various places in the district under the SSA scheme today.

He also saw the functioning of Block Resource Centre and Cluster Resource Centre at Budalur and Thirukattupalli respectively.

Later talking to presspersons he said that the main aim of the SSA was to provide education to children from First Standard to Eighth Standard without dropping out. Another aim was to eradicate child labour and the SSA helped in achieving this.

He saw the construction of three classrooms under the SSA for the high school at Vallam.

The primary school at Vallam was upgraded into a high school in 1986 and since then it has been functioning in the primary school building itself. As classrooms were inadequate for the high school, it was decided to construct new buildings under the SSA and also using the Local Area Development Fund of Thanjavur MP, S.S.Palani Manickam, who is the Union Minister of State for Finance.

The Collector, who later visited Pudukudi village in Budalur panchayat union to inspect the construction of three classroom buildings constructed under the SSA, expressed dissatisfaction over the delay in completion of the work and the location selected for the building.

He said that the classrooms were constructed under an electric line and this could have been avoided. A sum of Rs.4.5 lakhs had been allotted to the contractor for completion of the building in three months time, but it remained incomplete. He said that the building should be completed soon lest the SSA project engineer would be suspended. He also inaugurated the bridge course centre for disabled children at Thirukattupalli. The bridge course centre would train the children and help them to join the mainstream for school learning.

P. Ramaraj, Chief Education Officer, said that 59 new primary schools have been started in the district under the SSA scheme from 2001-2002 to 2005-2006 in the district. Seventy-six primary and middle schools have been upgraded. Further, it has been planned to upgrade 15 primary schools into middle schools during 2005-06 under the scheme.

During 2004-2005, 248 child labourers were identified in the district and they were trained through bridge course centres and admitted to schools.

Adiyapatham, District Elementary Education Officer, Sakthivel, Assistant Project Co-ordinator, SSA, accompanied the collector during his visit.

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SSA has reduced rate of school dropouts: Collector