AAP ministers, MLAs go on plaque unveiling spree in Punjab schools under ‘Sikhya Kranti’; Opp questions overdrive

At least 25,000 works will be inaugurated in over 10k schools with the entire inauguration drive expected to cost Rs 20 crore approximately. However, teachers say they paid from their pockets to make inauguration arrangements Monday as funds are yet to be released.

Bains inaugurated projects worth Rs 2.34 crore in Mohali district including renovated blocks and mini science centre worth Rs 1.70 crore at Swargwasi Gurnam Singh Senior Secondary School, Derabassi, Mohali.

Cabinet minister Lal Chand Kataruchak while inaugurating a repaired boundary wall in Pathankot, Monday (Express Photo)

However in districts, ministers and MLAs also inaugurated renovated/repaired projects along with new ones. In Pathankot district, cabinet minister Lal Chand Kataruchak inaugurated a repaired boundary wall at senior secondary school in Tango Shah village.

Ludhiana North MLA Madan Lal Bagga inaugurated two rooms and two repaired washrooms at senior secondary school Kundanpuri in Ludhiana. In primary school, Model Town, Pathankot, two renovated rooms were inaugurated and name of AAP’s halqa incharge Vibhuti Sharma was written on the stone (as the local MLA belongs to BJP).

Cabinet minister Hardeep Singh Mundian inaugurated works at School of Eminence, Sahnewal where a library was opened and floor tiles repaired. Rajya Sabha MP Sanjeev Arora inaugurated some new classrooms in Ludhiana.

In several schools, multiple plaques were installed in the same campus for different works, as per the government orders. For instance, at Government Senior Secondary School, Bazidpur, Ferozepur district, three separate plaques were installed. In some schools, four plaques were also installed for separate works.

Opp questions Sisodia’s name on plaque; remind Mann of his old words

Meanwhile, the Opposition including the Congress, BJP and SAD targeted the ruling AAP on the “overdrive”. The Opposition questioned why Sisodia’s name was written on the plaque during the inauguration of Nawanshahr SoE . The Opposition also lashed out at AAP for splurging crores on inauguration plaques and said that Mann should remember his own words, before he became the CM, when he used to target other parties for installing plaques.

Questioning the AAP-led Punjab government’s education model, Leader of Opposition in the Punjab Assembly, Partap Singh Bajwa on Monday termed the party’s newly envisaged Sikhya Kranti programme “petty theatrics to gain publicity”. He added that the party was misusing teachers as its propaganda machinery. “Instead of improving the schools’ basic infrastructure and recruiting teachers and other staff, the AAP government has embarked on an inauguration spree. Orders have been issued to install the inauguration plaques for even the insignificant works such as boundary wall, classroom, washroom etc. Each work will have a separate plaque, as per the written order to the teachers,” Bajwa said.

Ludhiana MLA Madan Lal Bagga while inaugurating repaired toilets at a school in Ludhiana, Monday (Express Photo)

Bajwa said that the total cost for the plaques and other arrangements for inauguration ceremonies would be around Rs 20.93 crore. “The AAP government had started misusing teachers as its propaganda machinery. Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains has even directed the school principals, headmasters, and teachers to create X Accounts and post photos and other updates with the hashtag PunjabSikhyaKranti. Are the teachers of the government-run schools supposed to teach or spread AAP’s agendas,” he said.

Bajwa said that on one hand, the future of 12 lakh students of class VIII, X, and XII in PSEB schools has been at stake due to fund shortage and staff crunch, the AAP government doesn’t shrink from misusing teachers on the other hand. “The AAP government doesn’t miss a single opportunity to disseminate its propaganda, despite the fact it has failed awfully to perform in the past three years,” Bajwa added.

Questioning the name of Sisodia on the plaque at Nawanshahr, former education minister and Congress MLA Pargat Singh wrote, “Mann ji.. you are imposing the names of rejected leaders of Delhi in the official works of Punjab, and they do not have any constitutional post here. If you have so much desire to write their names on stones in Punjab, then you should make them contest the Ludhiana West bypoll so that they can sit on your chair directly.”

Reminding CM Mann of his old words when he was the Lok Sabha MP from Sangrur, SAD leader Parambans Singh Romana posted an old video, in which Mann could be heard saying that names of those masons and labourers should be written on foundation stones who have actually constructed the project, not that of politicians.

Punjab BJP spokesperson Pritpal Singh Baliawal said to Mann, “Weren’t you the ones screaming that “teachers should only teach, not be burdened with other duties? Now you’re shamelessly turning educators into your personal Twitter PR agents. Disgraceful. What benefit is Punjab getting from leaders like Manish Sisodia, who were rejected by the people of Delhi? Are we importing failed models to destroy Punjab’s future too? You’ve gone silent on a burning issue — the loot happening in the name of books. Why aren’t you acting against private schools forcing parents to buy expensive books on commission? Is your education revolution blind to this daily exploitation?”

Meanwhile, hitting back at the Opposition, Bains said, “Those who neglected government schools for decades now seem to have problems seeing ‘Padhda Punjab’. When Punjab’s education system was failing, they remained silent. Now that our children are thriving, they feel threatened. We inherited approximately 20,000 government schools in deplorable conditions—without boundary walls, without proper bathrooms, without adequate educational facilities for our children. Today, nearly every government school in Punjab has boundary walls, functional and separate toilets for girls & boys, furniture, drinking water facilities and 90% have WiFi connectivity. It is a fight against the private school mafia and powerful negative forces that profited from the neglect of government education. The opponents are comfortable when their children attend expensive private schools having security guards and modern facilities, but feel threatened when poor children receive the same quality education.”

On teachers being asked to promote the drive on social media, he said, “What is the problem in advertising if we have done good work?”