Bangalore: With Minister for Primary and Secondary Education Basavaraj Horatti saying that the Government is not responsible for shifting the students of 2,011 schools that have been derecognised, parents have now begun to worry about the fate of their wards.

The Minister told presspersons on Thursday that there was no change in the Government's decision to shutdown 2,011 schools that had violated relevant rules by switching over to English medium, although they were permitted to run the schools in Kannada medium.

The parents, who had admitted their wards in these schools, would have to shift them to other recognised schools from next year, he said.

"It is the duty of the parents to identify schools for admission of their wards," he said.

A meeting of the officials of the Education Department would be called to discuss the problems to be faced while shifting children to recognised schools. The issue would be discussed at the Cabinet meeting, Mr. Horatti said.

He said since the decision to derecognise the schools had been deferred till the end of the academic year, parents had ample time to find schools for their wards.

Constitutional provision

G.S. Sharma, president of Karnataka (Recognised) Unaided School Managements' Association (KUSMA), told The Hindu that the Constitution had a provision which gave an organisation/association the right to run an educational institution without recognition up to eighth standard.

He said that a child could join any school without a transfer certificate, up to the eighth standard. "When this is the case, parents need not feel anxious about admitting their wards in recognised schools," he said.

Mr. Sharma said the department should create awareness among parents in this regard.

The department had derecognised the schools during the second week of September for violating the Language Policy of 1994, according to which the medium of instruction should either be in Kannada or in the mother tongue. The schools had given an undertaking in this regard. When the move received Opposition from various quarters, the Minister assured the parents that the Government and the officials of the department would make sure that each child from the derecognised schools was admitted to government aided and unaided schools in the vicinity.

The Minister has now said that the parents would have to look for alternative schools for their wards and the Government would not get into the issue.

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