Construction Of One-third Eklavya Residential Schools Delayed Due To Land Unavailability: Govt – News18

Last Updated:April 02, 2025, 20:49 IST

The government aims to establish 728 Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) to provide quality education to tribal children from Class 6 to 12 in remote areas, enabling them to compete equally with others.

Nearly one-third of the designated Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) are non-operational due to incomplete building construction, reported PTI. Several of these schools, being built to provide quality education to tribal students, have been delayed due to land unavailability, encroachment, legal disputes, and lack of permission to use forest land, the government told Parliament on Wednesday.

The government aims to establish 728 Eklavya Model Residential Schools to provide quality education to tribal children from Class 6 to 12 in remote areas, enabling them to compete equally with others. Out of these, 721 have been approved, with 477 functional and 245 remaining non-functional,  Minister of State for Tribal Affairs Durgadas Uikey said in response to a query from Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.

Uikey mentioned that the primary reason for the delay in operationalising these schools is the incomplete construction of buildings, as states have not provided suitable, encumbrance-free land. He noted that work has either halted or slowed due to encroachment and local disturbances, the report added.

Additional reasons for the delays include significant delays in obtaining permission to use forest land, legal disputes over identified land, and the lack of approach roads. The minister highlighted that difficult terrain with steep slopes renders land unsuitable for school construction in some areas. In the northeast, land is often provided with conditional gift deeds for construction, he added.

Uikey also noted that each EMRS can accommodate up to 480 students, with 31 sanctioned teacher posts, resulting in an average pupil-teacher ratio of 15.5:1.

A report presented last month in the Lok Sabha by the Standing Committee on Social Justice and Empowerment pointed out delays in utilizing funds allocated under the EMRS scheme. The panel observed that out of Rs 5,943 crore budgeted for 2023-24 and Rs 6,399 crore for 2024-25, only Rs 2,471.81 crore and Rs 4,748.92 crore (as of February 17, 2025) had been utilized.

For 2025-26, Rs 7,088.60 crore has been allocated to the EMRS scheme, accounting for 47 percent of the ministry’s total budget.