Halting Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan funds to states not accepting PM Shri not justified Par panel

    New Delhi, Mar 26 (PTI) Blocking the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) funds of states that have not accepted the PM-SHRI schools scheme is not justifiable, a parliamentary panel said Wednesday, and recommended the Centre release the grants due to states like Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.
    The committee's observations come amid an ongoing war of words between the Centre and the Tamil Nadu government over the halting of more than Rs 2,100 crore for the state after it refused to implement new National Education Policy (NEP) objecting to the three-language formula.
    The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education,Women, Children, Youth and Sports, headed by the Congress' Digivjay Singh, recommended that the Ministry of Education should re-evaluate Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) funding allocations and ensure that none of the states is placed in disadvantageous positions for not accepting NEP 2020 or PM SHRI scheme.
    The SSA -- an overarching programme extending from pre-school to class 12 -- aims at improving school effectiveness measured in terms of equal opportunities for schooling and equitable learning outcomes.
    It subsumes the three schemes of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) and Teacher Education (TE).
    "The Committee has taken serious note of the non-release of SSA funds to certain
states which have not signed MoUs for implementation of PM SHRI scheme. The total funds pending under this scheme to the states are considerable, with over Rs 1,000 crore to West Bengal, Rs 859.63 crore to Kerala and Rs 2,152 crore to Tamil Nadu.     "The committee also notes that 33 out of 36 states and Union territories have signed the MoU for PM SHRI and are implementing the scheme and developing NEP exemplar schools so as to create an equivalence in assessment and curriculum at the national level," said the report tabled in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.
    The committee recommended the department to resolve the issue amicably with state governments concerned and release the pending funds on priority basis.
    "The department has also informed the committee that PM SHRI is the model
school scheme developed under the NEP and the SSA is the program to achieve the NEP
goals. This appears to be the reasoning behind the decision to halt SSA grants to states not signing the PM SHRI MoU.
    "However, the Committee takes the view that this reasoning is not factual or justified. The SSA predates PM SHRI and is intended to help states to achieve the targets of the Right to Education Act. The RTE is a law duly passed by Parliament and confers education as a fundamental right onto every child. The SSA, as a scheme that enforces the fundamental right-based RTE, cannot be bypassed by the NEP, which was an executive policy statement," the report said.
    The committee observed that states like Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal (all ruled by non-BJP parties) have demonstrated strong educational outcomes with a Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER), significantly above the national average.
    "However, underfunding and delays in transfer of SSA funds have constrained further advancements in their school infrastructure, teacher training, and student support. These states have been compelled to use their own funds to pay salaries to teachers and resource personnel due to delays in release of central allocations," the panel said in its report.
    "During FY 2024-25, state like Tamil Nadu was allocated Rs 3,586 crore under
SSA, with the Union government's share expected to contribute Rs 2,152 crore, but this amount has not been released despite repeated requests by the state governments. The withholding of funds is severely impacting teachers’ salaries, RTE reimbursements, and transportation for students in remote areas.
    "The committee further observes that withholding the funds under SSA to states for not entering into MoU for separate schemes like PM SHRI is not justifiable," it added.     The panel has recommended immediate release of pending SSA funds to states like Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal to prevent disruption in salaries, teachers training programs, and school infrastructure maintenance.
    "Department should re-evaluate SSA funding allocations and ensure that none of the states are placed in disadvantageous positions for not accepting NEP 2020 or PM SHRI scheme. The committee also recommends the department to ensure an objective, need-based model to ensure equitable fund distribution across states," the report said.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)