PGI Report: BJP Blames 5T Initiative For Drop In Odisha Rank In School Education

Bhubaneswar: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has held the 5T initiative of Odisha government responsible for falling standard of school education in the state.

Speaking at a presser in Bhubaneswar on Monday, BJP leader Lekhashree Samantsinghar said as per the performance grading index (PGI 2.0) report released by the Union ministry of education, Odisha has slipped from 10th rank in 2020-21 to 24th spot in 2021-22.

“The drop in the rank shows negligence of the state government towards education. The PGI report points out that closure of schools, lack of classrooms and toilets and absence of teachers from duty are major contributing factors for poor show of the state in education,” she said.

Stating that PGI report is a chargesheet against the state, the BJP leader said since the education system was brought under 5T Initiative of the government, the standard of students has nosedived. Besides changing outer looks of the school buildings under the initiative, no major step has been taken for improving the quality of education, she added.

“In the name of transformation of schools, 5T has introduced a contractual system in the education system thereby causing more harm than good to the future of the students,” she said.

She also came down on BJD’s Rajya Sabha member Sasmit Patra for accusing the Union Education Ministry, headed by Dharmendra Pradhan, of undermining Odisha’s education progress. “Patra’s statement smacks more of politics than concern about the issue. Instead of finding the causes of poor performance, the ruling BJD is finding loopholes in the report. It is a matter of grace concern not only for the education system but also futurte of students in the state,” Samantasinghar said.