Over 7000 primary schools shut down in past decade in West Bengal

The report further says that in South 24 Parganas district alone, there has been a decrease of 1,182 schools – the highest among the districts. This is followed by Jhargram and West Midnapore, where there has been a substantial decrease of 1074 primary schools.

Kolkata: In a shocking revelation by the state education department, it was found that more than 7000 primary schools in the state have been closed in the last ten years. Interestingly enough, all the closure of the schools happened during the period of the Trinamool Congress that came to power in 2011.

According to a report by the state education department, there were a total of 74,717 primary schools in the state in March 2012 but it came down to 67,699 in March 2022 - a substantial decrease of 7,018 primary schools. Additionally, the report also mentions that the number of students enrolled in primary schools has also decreased in the state.

The report further says that in South 24 Parganas district alone, there has been a decrease of 1,182 schools – the highest among the districts. This is followed by Jhargram and West Midnapore, where there has been a substantial decrease of 1074 primary schools. In East Midnapore also there has been a decrease of 876 primary schools.

"Primary schools have declined in 21 districts of West Bengal. The number of students has declined by about 7,000 in the last ten years. The state government is solely responsible for the state of education. The government is indifferent to the declining number of schools or pupils. Schools in the marginal areas are shutting down but no one is worried about it. The state government has no plans to improve the quality of education in the state,” Srijan Bhattacharya, state president of the left-wing student organization SFI, said.

On the other hand, educationist Debashis Sarkar said, "From the point of view of education, the closure of so many primary schools is a national loss. The biggest force in India at the moment is the young generation. If they are educated, they become an asset to the nation. The main responsibility of the government is to ensure a complete education to the younger generation.”

“The Rotary Commission has recommended 6 per cent of the GDP's allocation for education. As seen in the last budget session, only 3.1 per cent of GDP was allocated to primary education. Both the state and the centre should work together to find a solution to this problem else it would have a long-term effect," he added.