Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala education minister V. Sivankutty on Tuesday strongly refuted the Centre’s statement that more than 200 government schools in the state have been shut down. Describing the claim as “baseless” and a deliberate attempt to tarnish Kerala’s reputation, the minister clarified that no government school has been closed in Kerala over the past nine years.

In a Facebook post, minister Sivankutty explained that the figures cited by the Centre pertain to the multi grade learning centres (MGLCs), which began in 1992 under the district primary education programme (DPEP). The minister said these centres could not continue as schools following the implementation of the right to education (RTE) act, leading to their phased closure.

He further stated that students from these centres were provided with free transportation and other facilities to attend nearby schools.

Minister challenges centre’s data and intentions

Sivankutty questioned whether there is any evidence to prove that a single government school has been closed in Kerala. He alleged that such claims are a deliberate attempt to undermine the state’s educational achievements.

The education minister’s response comes after the union minister of state for education, Jayant Chaudhary, informed the Lok Sabha that Kerala had shut 201 government schools between the academic years 2021-22 and 2023-24.