Central govt spends 4% on schools while we spend 40%: Arvind Kejriwal

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday took a dig at the Centre and said that the Central Government is spending only 4 per cent of the total budget on schools and hospitals while the Delhi government, for the past eight years, has been spending 40 per cent of the budget on the same.

CM Kejriwal and Delhi Education Minister Atishi laid the foundation stone for new school buildings in the National Capital's Rohini today.

"When we go to inaugurate schools, mohalla clinics, and hospitals, people from other parties reach there to raise slogans against us. Today is an auspicious day because four schools are being inaugurated. 'Aaj toh kam se kam yeh gandi rajniti na karo' (Don't do such dirty politics today). You must have read in the newspapers that the Central Government is spending 4 cents of the budget on schools and hospitals across the country. The Delhi government has been spending 40 per cent on schools and hospitals for the last 8 years," he said.

The Delhi CM further said that there was a time when the condition of government schools was so bad in Delhi that poor people were forced to send their children to government schools because there was no money and the fees of private schools were very high.

"There was absolutely zero education in government schools. Today, there is such a huge gathering in the inauguration of four government schools, which means that people are still hopeful that their children will get a good education," he said.

The AAP chief emphasized that poor lost hope that their children could get a good education but now that hope has been rekindled.

"Today the infrastructure, teachers and results of government schools are better than private schools. Today, education arrangements for 10,000 children are being made in these four schools. These schools will be ready in a year; their foundation is being laid today," he said.

"Now we have made a map of the entire Delhi. There are many areas in Delhi where there is a shortage of schools. We have made a list of such areas and schools are being built in there so that arrangements can be made for the education of the poor," CM Kejriwal said.