Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday said the school dropout rates in Uttar Pradesh have reduced to three per cent, asserting that his government will bring it down to zero, the Press Trust of India reported.
While addressing a cheque distribution programme for 24,717 part-time instructors after their monthly honorarium was hiked from Rs 7,000 to Rs 17, 000 in the state, the chief minister said that the government had no hesitation in extending benefits to part-time instructors as they never adopted "coercive methods" nor resorted to violence or pressure tactics for their demands.
As per the PTI report, Adityanath alleged that the state of basic education before he became the chief minister in 2017 was "barren" and on the verge of collapse.
"The dropout rate in the state used to be around 17 to 18 per cent. Out of every 100 children, nearly 17 or 18 would leave school prematurely. Today, we have reduced it to around three per cent and we will bring it down to zero," he said.
Earlier in April, the chief minister appealed to every section of society to ensure no child is left out of school, pushing to bring down the dropout rate to zero.
Addressing the gathering, the chief minister said several proposals were pending in 2017 to terminate the services of instructors in schools where the number of students had fallen below 100, but his government chose not to proceed with such measures.
"There was neither a clear policy nor an honest intent earlier. How could basic education have improved in such a situation?" he said.
Adityanath also defended schools involving students in community work and criticised the tendency to object to such activities on social media.
"Whenever children participate in community service, some people project it negatively. I would say teachers should not face action for such initiatives, instead, they should be honoured for preparing children for the future," he said.
He said the government had decided to raise the monthly honorarium of part-time instructors to Rs 17,000 per month and provide them and their families with health insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh. "Cashless treatment facilities will be available to instructors and their family members," he said.
The chief minister said a portal for the scheme had already been developed and directed the Basic Education Council to expedite the process so that health cards could be distributed at a major function next week.
The government believes that honorariums for instructors and 'Shiksha Mitras' should be respectable and their work should also carry dignity, he added.
In April, Adityanath had stated that Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas have been established in every block, with approvals now extended up to Class 12 to support girls from underprivileged backgrounds.