State convention against KPS Magnet Scheme on April 10

The All India Democratic Students’ Organisation (AIDSO), along with the Save Public Education Committee, on Tuesday released a poster announcing a mega State-level public convention against the KPS Magnet Scheme in Mysuru.

The convention, themed “Save Our Village Schools”, is scheduled to be held at Freedom Park in Bengaluru on April 10, where thousands of students, parents, and citizens are expected to participate in a protest against the alleged closure and merger of government schools.

The AIDSO alleged that the government is attempting to shut down nearly 40,000 village schools under the guise of the KPS Magnet Scheme, warning that the move would adversely affect access to education for children from rural and economically weaker sections.

“In the last four months, significant resistance has emerged across villages, with parents and locals forming ‘Save Public Education Struggle Committees’ to oppose school closures. Villagers are united in their demand that local schools must not be shut down,” the AIDSO leaders told reporters after releasing the poster.

Despite public criticism, the government has proceeded with mapping exercises to identify schools for merger, and officials have been directed to conduct surveys for Magnet schools, they alleged, in a statement.

They further claimed that headmasters of affected schools have received verbal instructions, while notices have been issued to pressure parents during meetings scheduled on April 8 and 9 to shift their children to the KPS schools in the coming academic year.

The statement from the AIDSO also stated that a meeting of district-level education officials, including DDPIs and BEOs, was held on April 1 for implementing the scheme.

Calling the move “anti-people and autocratic”, the AIDSO and allied organisations warned of intensifying their agitation under the slogan “Let our village schools survive”, with the April 10 convention expected to serve as a major platform to mobilise support.

Several prominent writers, educationists, activists, and leaders from farmers’, labour, youth, and women’s organisations are expected to participate in the convention.

Organisers said that hundreds of participants from Mysuru district are preparing to attend the convention in Bengaluru.

Social activist Ugra Narasimhe Gowda, AIDSO district president Chandrakala, district secretary Nithin, and others were present at the press conference.