Allahabad HC extends interim order to maintain status quo on pairing of schools in Sitapur till Sep 1

Lucknow, Aug 21 (PTI) The Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court on Thursday extended an interim order to maintain status quo on pairing of schools in Sitapur till September 1.

The bench also asked the Uttar Pradesh government to bring on record the order whereby it decided not to pair schools situated at less than a kilometre from each other and having a strength of more than 50 students.

The bench comprising Chief Justice Arun Bhasali and Justice Jaspreet Singh passed the order on special appeals filed separately by Master Nitesh Kumar and others.

Hearing the appeals on July 24, the court had ordered the state to maintain status quo on the proceedings related to pairing of schools in Sitapur district.

The court had said that some discrepancies had clearly been found in the record produced by the state government.

The Yogi Adityanath government's new "school pairing" policy -- announced in June to merge more than 10,000 primary and upper primary schools with fewer than 50 students into nearby schools -- has sparked a fierce political storm in Uttar Pradesh.

While officials defend it as a move to improve educational infrastructure, bolster teacher availability, and align schools with the National Education Policy 2020, the opposition brands it as a thinly-veiled attempt to shut down government schools, especially in the marginalised and rural areas.

The controversy also triggered protests as well as legal challenges -- including petitions in courts -- and heated exchanges in the state Assembly, with critics warning of disrupted access to education and increased dropout risks due to greater travel distance. PTI COR KIS ARI ARI