West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday voiced her disapproval about the proposal of a semester system in primary classes and admonished Education Minister Bratya Basu for it going public without her nod.
Chairing a review meeting with ministers and top bureaucrats at the state secretariat, Banerjee asked Basu to consult her before making policy decisions such as this.
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“This (semester in primary schools) will not happen (here). I do not want to put unnecessary pressure on children but want to reduce the weight of their school bags. This cannot be applicable to primary school students who cannot even talk properly. Whatever system is there in schools would go on. There will not be any semester system in schools,” the CM said.
“This can be continued in colleges and universities because the students there know the system and have got accustomed to it,” she added.
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Banerjee asked the minister not to divulge in the press any decisions like this.
“I did not know nor did the chief secretary about the introduction of the semester system in primary classes. I have seen this in the newspaper. Look, Bratya, you are an education minister but please remember that if there is a new policy decision then please consult us,” Banerjee said.
Basu said he also saw it in the press and sent the proposal to the chief secretary, and the decision would have been implemented only after Banerjee’s nod.
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“How did it reach the media? Four advisors have taken a decision and it was placed,” the CM said.
Basu later told reporters that the board of primary education had sent a proposal to the Education Department in this regard.
“We forwarded it to the chief secretary as it is a policy matter. As the chief minister has made it clear that she is not giving consent to the proposal, the matter rests here,” he said.
“I wish to remind you that the semester system was introduced in the higher secondary level after the approval of the CM,” he added.
