Page 25 - EducationWorld January 2023

infrastructure. Among multinational Partnership, which owns/manages this, most state governments al-
corporations that have established over 50 schools in 13 countries with locate 10-15 percent of their budgets
large offices and research centres an aggregate 45,000 students, in- for education with the Delhi state
in the city are Apple, Cognizant, vested in Sancta Maria International government allocating 23 percent. In
Amazon, and Capgemini. This has School. neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, the
also spurred the growth of numerous But even as high-end private YS Reddy government has allocated
education institutions. schools are mushrooming in Telan- Rs.27,706 crore (11.74 percent) of
Among the new international gana and Hyderabad in particular, the budget (Rs.2.56 lakh crore) for
schools that have set up shop in the state’s 30,023 government education.
Hyderabad in recent years are schools are suffering neglect and “After formation of the state in
Indus International, Sancta Maria, disarray. The BRS government is 2014 following a protracted struggle
CHIREC International, Silver Oaks doing precious little to upgrade and for statehood, the TRS government
and Oakridge International — all improve government schools because which assumed power in the new
highly ranked in the annual Educa- a large percentage of the state’s state, has consistently reduced the
tionWorld India School Rankings budget expenditure is being spent on share of the budget for education
league tables. Moreover the city has freebies and handouts to pander to over the years. From 10.89 percent
also attracted the attention of global the electorate. of the budget outlay in 2014-15, to a
private school chains. In November Despite the prolonged closure of little over half of it in the upcoming
2019, the UK-based Cognita Group schools countrywide for 82 weeks financial year (2022-23), the sector
which owns/manages 90 primary- in 2020-21 because of the Covid-19 has seen a continuous dip in monetary
secondary schools in eight countries pandemic during which children — resources over the past eight years,”
around the world, planted its first especially in government schools — says G. Ram Mohan, correspondent
flag on Indian soil in Hyderabad suffered huge learning loss, the TRS/ of the online Wire.in.
by acquiring the CAIE (UK) and BRS government’s allocation for edu- In a state where the public highly
IB-affiliated CHIREC International cation in 2022-23 at Rs.16,042 crore values education, that’s dicey elector-
School (estb.1989). Last January, is a mere 6.24 percent of the total al strategy.
the UK-based International Schools budget (Rs.2.57 lakh crore). Against Kingshuk Nag (Hyderabad)

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