Namma School scheme is first of its kind in India: Poyyamozhi

CHENNAI: Dismissing former chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami's claim that DMK's 'Namma School' scheme was already launched during the previous AIADMK regime, Tamil Nadu school education minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi clarified that the scheme was launched for the first time in the country.

Chief Minister MK Stalin recently unveiled the "Namma School Foundation" project with the objective of improving the infrastructure facilities in government schools across the state with private participation.

However, AIADMK interim general secretary Palaniswami charged the DMK government for re-introducing the scheme, which existed during the AIADMK regime in the name of 'Corporate Social Responsibility' (CSR). He also claimed that a common public portal was also launched by him for donating to government schools online in a transparent manner.

Reacting to Palaniswami's claim, Poyyamozhi clarified that though the previous AIADMK government has launched an online fundraising scheme, it was not transparent.

"It (online funding) had several issues. Though the funds were collected under CSR, there were no proper guidelines on how to utilize the amount for improving the infrastructure of the government schools", he said adding "since the scheme was very vague during that time, the DMK had to implement a new scheme with proper procedures".

Claiming that the 'Namma School' scheme has more transparency with proper guidelines, the minister said that the whole project was formulated by an expert committee comprising senior authorities in Education and Finance Department and the panel would identify the requirements of each school and accordingly the funds would be distributed through the district collectors".

With the Opposition of leader's claim that during AIADMK was in the power, it had received Rs 82 crore through CSR for the development of schools, Poyyamozhi countered that the online school funding raising program, which was started in 2019, has received only Rs 9,78,416 (including interest). "Therefore, there is no evidence that the then government had generated Rs 82 crore", he said.

On Palaniswami's charges that the DMK government had "unnecessarily" spent Rs 3 crore to inaugurate the 'Namma School' scheme, the education minister said "this amount was allocated for the district collectors to conduct meeting and workshops with the corporates to further develop the scheme".