ABVP urges Centre to ensure implementation of PM SHRI scheme in Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], October 31 (ANI): The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has written to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, seeking the Central Government's intervention to implement the Centrally sponsored education scheme, PM SHRI (PM Schools for Rising India).
The ABVP's appeal came after the CPI(M)-led state government had put on hold all the activities related to the scheme due to the reservations expressed by the coalition partner CPI.
"For months, ABVP was the only student organisation in Kerala relentlessly demanding that the State Government sign the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Central Government. We were relieved when, following considerable pressure and protest from ABVP cadres and the general student community, the State Government finally signed the necessary MoU," the ABVP said in the letter.
"However, the momentum has been abruptly halted. We have learned that due to sustained political pressure from key allies and opposition parties, the CPI(M)-led State Government has now frozen all further activity related to the PM-SHRI scheme and has constituted a sub-committee to "study" its details. The Hon'ble Chief Minister has confirmed this decision, stating that a letter detailing the state's current stand and decision will be sent to the Centre," the letter read.

On Wednesday, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan announced that a seven-member cabinet sub-committee, chaired by Education Minister V. Sivankutty, will be constituted to review the implementation of the PM SHRI scheme in the state.
The ABVP termed the state government's decision "purely politically motivated and runs directly against the educational interests and sentiments of the students and youth of Kerala."
"The students of this state deserve equitable access to the same modernisation and opportunities being rolled out across the rest of Bharat under the PM-SHRI umbrella. Denying them these benefits due to narrow political considerations is unjust and detrimental to their future," the ABVP said.
"We appeal to the Central Government to explore and establish a mechanism to ensure the direct and time-bound implementation of the PM-SHRI scheme in Kerala. We urge you to bypass the politically motivated impediments being erected by the state administration and guarantee that the scheme's transformative benefits reach the students who need them most," the letter read. (ANI)