Thiruvananthapuram: As the first step in withdrawing from the PM-SHRI (Pradhan Mantri Schools for Rising India) scheme, the Kerala government has prepared a letter to the Centre requesting a freeze on the agreement. The Chief Secretary has drafted the letter, which will be sent after review by the Chief Minister. However, no final decision has been made on whether the letter will be dispatched directly by the state government or through the General Education Department.

Under the understanding reached in recent talks between the CPI(M) and CPI, a cabinet sub-committee will review the scheme. With only five months left in the academic year, the freeze effectively ensures that no schools in Kerala will be selected for the PM-SHRI scheme this year.

According to PM-SHRI guidelines, schools can apply through a portal that opens every quarter. The portal is scheduled to open in January, at the start of the fourth quarter. Kerala schools will only be able to participate if the sub-committee finalises its decision before then. As the state enters the general election phase following local body elections, the government is unlikely to take any hasty action on the scheme.

How PM-SHRI Works

The scheme involves three main phases:

Memorandum of Understanding (MoU): The central and state governments sign an MoU.

School Selection: Eligible schools are identified using data from the UDISE Plus portal and selected on a competitive basis according to the scheme’s criteria.

Verification: The state government directly verifies compliance with the selection criteria.

Centre Responds

Union Ministry of Education officials said they are not yet aware of Kerala’s decision to freeze the scheme and will take a position only after receiving official notification from the state. For now, the Centre intends to proceed with the implementation as per the MoU. Sources noted that concessions in the scheme’s conditions cannot be granted to a single state, and it remains up to the states to decide how to implement the programme.

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has not commented on reports suggesting that Kerala is backing out of PM-SHRI.