The villagers allege that the Ratnagiri district administration is forcing teachers from Zilla Parishad (ZP) schools to promote the JNPP by visiting the home of every student.
Twenty-two villages around the proposed site for the 9900mw Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project (JNPP) on Monday decided to boycott all educational institutes in the area for the next two days as a form of protest against the state’s propaganda in favour of the project.
The villagers allege that the Ratnagiri district administration is forcing teachers from Zilla Parishad (ZP) schools to promote the JNPP by visiting the home of every student.
“The teachers were called for a meeting last week. In it, they were told to visit each household to promote the project by highlighting only its positive points,” said Amjad Borkar from Sakhri-Natye and president of the Macchhimar Kruti Samiti. “First of all, this is not a teacher’s duty. It is also against the rules to force teachers to do the government’s bidding. Teachers are helpless, as they have no option but to adhere to the administration’s orders. But as citizens, we are free to protest against such tactics.”
The villagers have decided not to send their children to any of the educational institutes — including anganwadis, primary schools, secondary schools and junior colleges — for the next two days. Around 2,500 children will participate in this boycott. “The teachers support us but cannot participate in the boycott as their jobs would be at risk. They will be sitting in empty classrooms for the next two days, as the boycott will be 100% successful,” said Satyajit Chavan, an activist of the Konkan Bachao Samiti (KBS).
The villagers have alleged that the government wants to use school children to promote its nuclear power project, which is completely unethical. “Villages who are in a 10-km radius of the proposed plant will participate in the boycott on Monday and Tuesday. Those outside that radius will boycott schools on Wednesday and Thursday,” informed Pradip Indulakar of KBS.
Praveen Gavankar, an activist leading the agitation, said, “From kindergarten to high schools, around 70 schools with nearly 2,500 students will remain shut in 22 villages, including Madhban, Mithgawane, Karel, Niweli and Ansure that are the most affected.” He said land for the project in Madhban, about 60 km from here and 370 km from the state capital Mumbai, had been acquired through force and this was unacceptable.
mHe added that no school in the area would celebrate Republic Day on January 26. “There will be no flag hoisting ceremony this Republic Day in any of the schools. We are planning to take our agitation further, as several schools of other villages have agreed to shut down on Wednesday and Thursday,” he said.
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