Dated – 12.12.2025 – The People’s Convention, representing the conscience of the citizens, parents, teachers, students and education activists of Karnataka, hereby resolves with grave concern and unwavering resolve:
STRONGLY CONDEMNS THE GOVERNMENT’S BETRAYAL:
This Convention, vehemently condemn the un-democratic, anti-people and anti-education policy of the Karnataka government to close down nearly 40,000 government schools under the deceptive guise of the ‘KPS Magnet School Scheme’. This is not an upgradation but a systematic blueprint for the destruction of public education. Thus, betraying the dreams of great renaissance thinkers like Vidyasagar, Jyotirao Phule, Savitribai Phule, Kudmal Ranga Rao, and the vision of our revered freedom fighters who envisioned education as a fundamental right for every child in every village. This disastrous scheme if allowed to continue, then millions of poor, downtrodden and children from workers’ and peasants’ families will never see the light of education and knowledge.
OPINES ‘KPS MAGNET SCHOOL’ SCHEME A FRAUD:
This scheme of merging 8 to 10 government schools into 1 ‘KPS Magnet School’, is a blueprint for destroying public education, aimed closing about 7,000 schools initially, with 37,000 already listed for closure.
Minister falsely claims “no school will be closed.” While the reality is, government order (dated: 15th October, 2025) orders to ‘merge’ hundreds of schools; decision and legislation to hand over closed school buildings and land to private organisations is under offing.
The scheme hypocritically implements NEP (National Education Policy)-2020’s school-closure agenda while the state claims to oppose it.
It’s a replica of the failed U.S. ‘Magnet School’ model, which destroyed neighbourhood schools, burdened poor families with transport costs, and increased segregation.
The scheme is financed by a huge ₹ 2,000 crore (and potentially ₹10,000 crore more to flow) loan from the profit-driven Asian Development Bank (ADB), raising the fundamental question: is this foreign funding an incentive or a reward for dismantling our public education system?
REJECTS THE FALSE EXCUSE OF “LOW STRENGTH” SCHOOLS BEING CLOSED:
Schools with 77–100 students are being closed, exposing the “10–30 student’s schools are unviable” claim as a blatant lie. Vindicated by the Education Department (Order dated 23-10-2025), to merger of 7 schools with the ‘Honganuru KPS Magnet School’, Channapattana, it is only one among many!
Government schools, with a healthy student-teacher ratio of 25:1, provide superior individual attention compared to overcrowded private schools with 75:1 ratio.
With only one Government Lower Primary School (LPS) for every 1.5 villages versus one private LPS school for every 15 villages, closure means destroying accessibility for rural and marginalised section of people.
The systematic collapse of the public education system has pushed helpless parents towards private schools; resulting in whopping 61% enrolment there. Closing neighbourhood government schools and imposing crushing transportation costs on poor labourers, effectively denys education to their children.
OPINES GOVERNMENT GUILTY OF DELIBERATE NEGLECT & FINANCIAL BETRAYAL:
In Karnataka, 21,255 classrooms need repair; more than 40% schools lack toilets/water; 61,525 teacher posts are vacant, replaced by mere 43,000 underpaid ‘guest teachers’. Schools get only ₹833 per month for maintenance, while Education Cess and tax money meant for
education are swindled, and tax concessions are gifted to corporates.
Teachers are burdened with 108 non-teaching tasks, leaving little time to teach.
Flawed language policy pushed parents toward private English-medium schools.
To further their commercial interests, MPs/MLAs who own private schools use state power to
undermine government schools.
CALL TO RESIST THE CORPORATE TAKEOVER OF EDUCATION:
Kalyana Karnataka Region Development Board (KKRDB) funds are misused to close nearly 10,000 schools in the 7 backward districts instead of filling 21,000 teacher vacancies there.
ADB/World Bank loans historically enforce “globalisation and privatisation reforms” for corporate profit, leading to reduced state funding, a moratorium on permanent teachers, and the proliferation of the ‘guest teacher’ problem.
The order says KPS schools must be “outsourced,” “financially self-sufficient” and “mobilise own resources.” This encourages astronomical fees and handover our govt. schools to corporate houses, converting “KPS Magnet Schools’ as “Corporate Magnet Schools”!
This plan aims to limit public education to mere 10 lakh children in 6,000 grampanchayat level ‘KPS
Magnet School’, pushing 70 lakh children into expensive private institutions.
THE DEMANDS & CALL TO ACTION:
We resolve to Launch a sustained, mass people’s movement across Karnataka to COMPLETELY STOP THE CLOSURE OF ANY GOVERNMENT SCHOOL.
Demand the government to ABANDON THE ANTI-PEOPLE ‘KPS MAGNET SCHOOL SCHEME’ IMMEDIATELY and instead, STRENGTHEN AND REVITALISE EVERY EXISTING GOVERNMENT SCHOOL by filling all teacher vacancies, providing adequate infrastructure, ensuring drinking water and toilets, and granting full functional autonomy to teachers.
REJECT THE CORPORATE AND FOREIGN-DRIVEN MODEL OF EDUCATION enshrined in NEP 2020 and the ADB-funded privatisation schemes, and affirm that education is a fundamental public good, not a commodity for profit.
INTRODUCE ‘TWO LANGUAGE FORUMAL – MOTHER TONGUE & ENGLISH”. Mother Tongue shall be the medium of instruction and English shall be efficiently taught from Class 1, in all schools.
Hold the government accountable to its constitutional duty as the primary provider of equitable, quality education for all, especially for the poor, downtrodden, marginalised, and girls, for whom government schools remain the only lifeline.
We declare that we shall not allow the “Tofan of privatisation” to sweep away the Right to Education.
We shall stand united to save public education from the clutches of the ‘pirates of education’. We call upon every democrat, every parent, every teacher, and every citizen to join this righteous struggle.
INTRODUCE SCIENTFIC, SECULAR, DEMOCRATIC & UNIVERSAL EDUCATION!
EDUCATION IS A RIGHT, NOT A PRIVILEGE!
SAVE PUBLIC EDUCATION! STOP SCHOOL CLOSURES!
