This is because the academic session is about to end, and the School Education Council has not yet released the budget for purchasing sports equipment. Officials say that sports equipment will be delivered to schools by tendering at the headquarters level, while school principals say that this system will affect the quality of sports equipment.
Sports grants are given to schools every year. School principals purchase sports equipment as needed from this grant, whereas, with centrally procured equipment, the school’s needs will be ignored. Every year, the council provides a budget of ₹5,000 for schools from class 1 to 5, ₹10,000 for schools from class 1 to 8, and ₹25,000 for higher secondary schools. This amount is usually released by September-October. This time, neither the budget nor the sports equipment has been provided until March. In the 2023-24 academic year, the amount was transferred in October.
The education department had previously printed question papers for uniform examinations at the headquarters level and subsequently recovered excess funds from schools, which was a subject of much discussion. Now, sports equipment will be purchased at the council level. It will be difficult to ensure both quality and meet the needs of the schools in this system. Due to the non-release of sports grants, sports equipment has not been purchased in schools. Students have been managing with borrowed equipment or by raising funds from donors.
Sports Equipment Procured Through Tenders at the School Education Council Level
This time, sports equipment has been purchased through a tender at the School Education Board level. It will soon be supplied to the block level and then distributed to schools. – Ramniwas Jangid, ADPC, Samasa, Nagaur
