RTE bogus scheme, private institutions minting money through it: Kumaraswamy

Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Friday said that Centre's Right to Education (RTE) programme is a bogus scheme, adding that private institutions are minting money in big scale through it.

Addressing 84th Kannada Sahitya Sammelan in Dharwad, Kumaraswamy asserted: "RTE is a bogus scheme and private institutions are minting money in a big scale in the name of RTE."

Kumaraswamy further highlighted that the Kannada language has been vanishing due to English. "After the Supreme Court's verdict Kannada medium schools have been converted into English medium schools. Due to English, Rajbhasha Kannada is vanishing. Let's do a resolution that private convents and English medium schools in the state should be privatised. If this was not taken seriously then there is no future of regional languages," he said.

"More than 1.5 lakh students fees were paid by the government and they are studying in private English medium schools under RTE," he added.

Taking his tirade against a rising number of private schools in the state, Kumaraswamy said: "Private education institutions are training their students in English, however, government schools are third-rate education is being provided to poor kids in government schools. Centre must improve government schools quality and it should be ready to spend any quantum of money to save Rajbhasha."

He further said that people's mentality is changing with time. Even an auto driver has a mindset that his children must study in Convent schools.