Centre stops school scheme funds to Delhi, Punjab & Bengal after states refuse to participate in PM-SHRI: Report

While states have to confirm their participation in PM-SHRI by signing a Memorandum of Understanding with Education Ministry— West Bengal, Delhi, and Punjab refused to do so alleging they are yet to receive third and fourth installments of SSA funds for last year's October-December and January-March period.

After Punjab, West Bengal, and Delhi refused participation in the Pradhan Mantri Schools for Rising India (PM-SHRI) scheme, the Education Ministry has stopped funds to the three states under Centre's flagship Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA)— a school education programme.

With an overall budget of over Rs 27,000 crore for the next five years— under PM-SHRI, Modi government and states will shoulder 60 and 40 per cent of the financial burden. As per a report in the Indian Express, the scheme is poised at upgrading at least 14,500 government schools into "exemplar" institutions to showcase the implementation of Centre's National Education Policy (NEP) of 2020.

While states have to confirm their participation in PM-SHRI by signing a Memorandum of Understanding with Education Ministry— West Bengal, Delhi, and Punjab refused to do so alleging they are yet to receive third and fourth installments of SSA funds for the last year's October-December and January-March period. The three states have further alleged that they have also not received the funds for the current financial year's April-June quarter.

Two states— Tamil Nadu and Kerala have however expressed their willingness to be part of PM-SHRI.

The total 'pending' funds three states await for

While Delhi is yet to receive Rs 330 crore, Punjab and West Bengal await Rs 515 crore and Rs 1,000 crore, respectively for the aforementioned three quarters. IE further quoted the three state governments as alleging that when asked for the delay over pending funds under SSA— the Education Ministry did not respond.

Authorities from the Education departments of the three states are also said to have written to the Modi government at the Centre seeking release of the pending funds under SSA.

West Bengal’s Education Minister Bratya Basu and Education Secretary Manish Jain are learnt to have written letters to the Ministry seeking release of SSA funds. The Delhi government, too, is learnt to have written to the Centre.

However, a senior official from the Ministry claimed that 'states cannot be receiving funds under SAA while not implementing the PM-SHRI scheme, which is a part of the programme'.

The objection with prefix 'PM-SHRI'

'Schools of Eminence'— is a similar programme like the PM-SHRI run by Aam Admi Party in Delhi and Punjab. West Bengal citing that the states bear 40 per cent of the financial burden is said to have denied attaching the prefix PM-SHRI to their schools.

'Punjab backed out after signing MoU in 2022'

At least five letters have been exchanged between the Punjab and the Central governments since last July.

As per documents accessed by IE, Punjab had signed the MoU in October 2022 and agreed to implement PM-SHRI. However, the party later decided to opt out. Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan is said to have written to the state CM Bhagwant Mann in which the former said: “Punjab has unilaterally opted out of the PM-SHRI scheme, contrary to the terms stipulated in the signed MoU”.

Education secretary of Punjab Kamal Kishore Yadav on March 15 replied to Pradhan and wrote a letter in which he stated that Punjab was implementing its own schemes namely— Schools of Eminence, Schools of Brilliance and Schools of Happiness, and these would be aligned with NEP.

Further urging the Centre to release the funds under SSA, Punjab SSA state project Director Vinay Bublani wrote to joint Secretary, Ministry of Education Vipin Kumar on January 18, requesting the release of funds “so that balance payments and targets fixed could be achieved in time”.