Dakshina Kannada (DK) district is witnessing a notable rise in interest to launch bilingual (Kannada-English) schools in the current academic year. Alongside, there’s a push to introduce kindergarten classes—LKG and UKG—within government school premises, particularly those managed by School Development and Monitoring Committees (SDMCs).
Govinda Madivala, Deputy Director of Public Instruction (DDPI), shared that the department has received multiple proposals and has forwarded them to the state for consideration. He attributed the surge in requests to the growing popularity of bilingual schools, which have seen encouraging parent feedback and strong student admissions.
According to Samagra Shikshana Karnataka (SSK), there are currently 122 bilingual schools in DK. However, only a limited number of new proposals receive government approval each year, due to policy constraints.
Another rising trend is the demand to open high schools on existing higher primary school campuses. Madivala pointed out that establishing a government high school requires adherence to strict norms, including a five-acre minimum land area and a 5 km radius exclusion rule. Because of these criteria, many proposals are turned down—though the restriction does not apply to unaided private schools.
In Surathkal, one government school even constructed facilities in anticipation of high school status. Authorities are now exploring ways to regularize it.
Regarding early education, Madivala said Karnataka Public Schools can officially run LKG/UKG. Other government schools may do so if there are no nearby anganwadis, as overlapping services pose logistical issues.
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