Thiruvananthapuram

Kerala General Education Minister V Sivankutty on Sunday announced that the state will join the PM SHRI scheme to get the due central funds, but asserted that it would not backtrack from the existing educational policy in the state.

He said every citizen of the country deserves central funds and so there is no need for Kerala to stay away from it.

There is already a due of Rs 1,466 crore central funds to the state for various educational programmes and children of Kerala deserve it, the minister said while speaking to a television channel.

However, the minister made it clear that joining the union government scheme is only a practical way to get the due funds and it would not make any difference in Kerala's existing educational policy.

He said the state can implement various programmes in the educational sector and pay the salaries of over 7,000 teachers smoothly only if it receives the funds.

"We will not backtrack from the state's educational policy. Various departments, including health, higher education and agriculture have already accepted the central funds," Sivankutty said.

The state would not implement anything against the existing policy, even if the Centre suggests so, he said.

He also recalled how Kerala had brought out alternate textbooks when the country's history was allegedly attempted to be distorted in the books of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) recently.

When reporters asked whether the decision was taken after holding a discussion with CPI, a key partner in the LDF, which has been vehemently opposing the state joining PM SHRI scheme, the minister didn't give a clear reply.

The PM Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI) scheme is a union government's initiative to upgrade select schools across the country.

More than 14,500 existing central, state, local body run schools will be strengthened and upgraded as PM SHRI, official sources have said.

Meanwhile, the differences of opinion in the ruling LDF over the PM SHRI came out as CPI leaders, later in the day, clarified that they were not aware of the development.

While CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam said there is no change to their earlier stand in the matter, senior party leader and Revenue Minister K Rajan said the Cabinet has not taken any decision in this regard.

When reporters sought his reaction, Viswam said he came to know about Sivankutty's statement only through the media and had no other information.

He said it should be thought of multiple times before taking any decision, as the state cannot accept the National Education Policy (NEP) which reflects RSS ideology and part of their agenda of "communalisation and commercialisation".

Rajan also spoke on similar lines and said no decision has been taken at the government level to join PM SHRI.

"It's a matter that requires necessary consultations," he said.

READ MORE: Diwali is the reason why global headwinds can't touch Indian economy

Though the Centre puts pressure on the state, Kerala won't kneel down before it, the minister said, adding that no decision has been taken in terms of the central scheme.