Highlights of the report based on 75 schools in five districts selected for monitoring:
• Selection of school for civil works imbalanced
• 40 schools still needs proper building
• Lack of proper electrification, water supply
• Only 3 schools had boundary fencing
• Furniture, stationary items required in all schools
• Student’s drop-out rate reduced
• All newly upgraded GMS without subject teachers
• Improvement in student’s drop-out rate
Our Correspondent
Kohima | March 17
Since the inception of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) programme in the state of Nagaland, all schools receive infrastructure development from the civil works component. The selection of school for civil works was imbalanced. Some schools were selected repeatedly whereas some were hardly selected even for once.
This was stated in the Monitoring and Evaluation report on SSA programme in Nagaland.
‘If SSA programme is withdrawn from Nagaland, the state education department would not be able to undertake the civil works’: Monitoring team observes
The state’s Department of Planning & Coordination during July 2015, has authorized the evaluation department to monitor the 15 Prime Minister’s Programme in the state, wherein the department picked up SSA programme.
To monitor the programme, the department has “randomly” selected 5 districts- Kohima, Peren, Longleng, Kiphire and Zunheboto.
In each selected district, the department has visited DMA and DEO office, SDEO office and three EBRCs. Besides that it has randomly selected five or more schools under one EBRC with civil works during the programme monitoring reference years.
The gross total amount received by the State Mission Authority for the state during the three years of SSA programme monitoring was Rs 45111.28 lakh. The same amount was utilized during the years for the successful implementation of SSA programme in the state.
The amount received during the reference monitoring years was utilized judiciously. All the DMAs offices and EBRCs were given amount as per their needs and schemes in their jurisdiction, the report stated, a copy which made available to The Morung Express.
The monitoring team covered 75 schools in five districts, out of that 40 schools still needs proper school building. All the schools have toilets; some schools have separate toilet for boys and girls and also common toilets.
The report stated that none of the school has proper electrification so schools cannot run during rainy season. None of the school the team visited had water supply connection even though some school had rain water harvesting tank constructed by the SSA programme.
Amongst the 75 schools the team visited, three schools had boundary fencing but the rest 72 schools had no fencing around the schools though they has received boundary walls/fencings during the initial period of SSA programme implementation in the state. The drinking water facility schemes of 2015-16 awarded to the school did not start the construction due to non-release of funds, the report stated.
The majority of DMA offices, EBRCs and schools the team had visited said that instead of supplying uniform raw materials, readymade uniforms with all the sizes should be provided to the students in future.
All the schools the team had visited expressed their appreciation that SSA Mid-Day Meals component encourages the students to come to schools. They also suggested that in addition to the present food stuff provided, nutritional food should be included in it.
In every school the team visited it was found that furniture were immediately need particularly in the upgraded GMS in the state. All the schools have no stationery items, even day to day requirements like chalk sticks, white boards, pens and papers.
The EBRC which the team visited expressed that the centre did not get EBRC grant, training grants, office maintenance funds etc. The schools are not getting school grant, teacher grant, teaching learning materials etc.
The student’s drop-out rate in Kohima was reduced to 5%, Peren district to 10%, Longleng district to 25%, Kiphire district to 22% and Zunheboto to 7% after the implementation of SSA programme and Right to Education Act in the state.
Almost all the newly upgraded GMS do not have Math, Science, Social Science and Hindi teachers in the schools. The school authorities are saying that upgrading the schools without required teachers are meaningless, the report stated.
The team observed that there is less of coordination between DMAs and DEO, SDEO offices in implementation of SSA programme in the districts.
T.O.Ts in all the EBRCs in the state was sitting idle due to non release of teachers training grants and monitoring and supervision grants to the centres.
SSA teachers in the state were not getting their salaries for many months, the report stated.
After the implementation of SSA programme in the state, significant improvement were detected in the field of school building infrastructure, teacher’s appointment and student’s drop-out rate. The people on the state were happy with the works undertaken under the SSA programme in the state, the report stated.
It is observed that if the SSA programme is withdrawn from the state, the state education department would not be able to undertake the civil works, teachers’ appointment or provide grants to the schools as has been done under SSA, the report stated.
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