High dropouts, teacher crunch and fund gaps cripple Samagra Shiksha in West Bengal: CAG report
A high dropout rate, teacher shortage and poor utilisation of central funds have affected the implementation of the Samagra Shiksha scheme in West Bengal, according
A high dropout rate, teacher shortage and poor utilisation of central funds have affected the implementation of the Samagra Shiksha scheme in West Bengal, according to a performance audit report by the CAG. The audit, which examined scheme execution across the state between 2019-20 and 2023-24, highlighted a massive 28 to 42% transition loss between upper primary and higher secondary levels. The audit team conducted a field survey of 581 out-of-school kids across 21 high schools in six test-checked districts to ascertain the reasons behind the high dropout rate. "The survey highlighted dropouts mainly due to financial constraints, early marriage and intentions of early earnings among students," the report said. According to the findings, poverty and financial hardship emerged as the biggest driver, with 53% of surveyed parents citing financial distress for pulling their children out of school.
Another 14% reported unwillingness among students to continue studies, 13 per cent stated migration for work, and 12% attributed the discontinuation of education to early marriage. It found that over 500 schools were functional without a single teacher. The report flagged critical structural gaps in teacher deployment and Pupil-Teacher Ratios (PTR) across State-run schools. "As many as 8% (5,152 schools) of schools in the State were running with only a single teacher, affecting 1,76,491 students, and 520 schools had no teachers, which impacted the education of 8,596 students," the CAG report stated. In contrast, the audit pointed out severe administrative imbalances, where 40,530 head teachers were posted in schools with fewer than 150 students, violating Right to Education (RTE) deployment norms. The report noted that 29% of primary schools and 30% of upper primary schools failed to achieve the minimum PTR norms due to a deficit of 31,684 primary and 2,058 upper primary teachers, respectively.
At the higher secondary level, 79% of schools exceeded the prescribed PTR limits. Examining public finance management, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) observed that scheme fund utilisation in the state ranged between a low 46 and 65% over the five-year period. "Delays in release of funds by the central and the state governments and delay in execution of targeted interventions exhibited fiscal indiscipline, weakening the outcome in achieving the scheme's objectives," the audit remarked. The report detailed that the non-execution of sanctioned civil works forced the state to surrender ₹395 crore meant for school infrastructure. Furthermore, execution inefficiencies and delays directly caused
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