If you thought that you could make a donation to a government school under the state’s school adoption programme introduced earlier this year, Shaalegaagi Naavu Neevu, (For the school, you and me)and thus immortalise a loved one by getting the school named in his or her memory, be prepared for disappointment. The state government has introduced a new norm, under which only those donating a third part of the total expenditure on the school building will be allowed a chance to name the building.
Officials from the state department of primary and secondary education said, “We changed the norms because many donors demanded to be allowed to name the whole school after making a donation that covered only as much as 2% of the total expenditure.To avoid pressure from such donors, we have made a few changes.”
Under the revised norms, a person donating less than 1/3 of the total cost will not be allowed to name a classroom or library constructed with the donated sum. “If more than one person makes donations for one school, the head of the school will have to devise a way to divide the school building or the land and thus name the school such that all the donors are satisfied,” said an official.
To avoid pressure in this regard, the department made changes to an earlier order . After the introduction of the school adoption programme, the number of donors to government schools has gone up substantially. Officials indicated that this necessitated amendment of norms.
The amendments, however, will not be applicable for donations that have already been made under the programme. Under the revised norms, a cash donation will be deposited into the state government’s account by the head master of the school. After that, the donor will be free to suggest a name for a portion of the school or the school itself, depending on the size of the donation.
If property is donated, the head master will be responsible for checking that all documents are in order. He will then allow the donor the option of suggesting a name. Once donated, the property will not be returned. The Shaalegaagi Naavu Neevu programme elicited an enthusiastic public response, andits successspurred the government to adopt another programme calling for greater public participation in schools. The neighbourhood programme will shortly run as a pilot programme in the Bangalore Urban district.
Comments