Demand to resume Oriya schools in Jharkhand

JAMSHEDPUR: Persisting with their longstanding demand to resume Oriya-medium schools in the state, representatives of the Oriya community have urged the state government to sincerely work in this direction.
Following a meeting of the Utkal Sammelani, wherein Oriya-medium school teachers of the Kolhan division were present in large numbers, a decision to take up the matter afresh with the incumbent government was taken.
"Several issues pertaining to Oriya-medium schools have remained unresolved all through the successive regimes in the last 13 years. We will take up our demand with the government afresh," said Ravindra Sathpathy, senior functionary of Utkal Sammelani, East Singhbhum.
Demanding the introduction of a 50-mark Oriya language paper compulsorily in all the state-run schools in Kolhan, senior Utkal representative said lack of Oriya language books is causing immense difficulty in imparting education in the existing Oriya-medium schools.
"We have planned to take a delegation to the state HRD top brass to settle all pending curriculum issues involving Oriya language," said Sathpathy.
Complaining that Oriya text books for Class VIII to X are in inadequate supply, the Utkal functionary said the condition of the 400-odd Oriya schools in the state is pathetic. With shortage of manpower and poor infrastructure, it is becoming increasingly difficult to run the day-to-day affairs of the schools.
"Of the 400 schools, majority of them are in the Kolhan division, which has a dominant Oriya-speaking population. Around 200 schools have no Oriya teachers at all," groused a functionary of the Sammelani.
The community representatives said they shall approach the neighbouring Odisha government and seek help in translating the Jharkhand Academic Council's Hindi school textbooks to Oriya language for supply in the Oriya -medium schools here.
"We have to work out alternative measures to resume the supply of Oriya language books to the Oriya-medium students," said Utkal Sammelani members.