The Supreme Court on Tuesday (February 11, 2025) came to the rescue of a 26-year-old Kendriya Vidyalaya school threatened with closure in Kerala, a State known for its 100% literacy.
“We are not thinking of closure,” Justice K.V. Viswanathan, leading a Bench with Justice N.K. Singh, observed.
The Bench directed the Ministry of Education to arrange a meeting with State and Central authorities on “war-footing”.
The case of the school was taken up by Congress MLA Ramesh Chennithala.
The story of the school began when it was sponsored by the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) at their project plant site at Kayamkulam in 1999. Its objective was to cater to the children of NTPC staffers. However, NTPC decided to shift from thermal to solar power for the generation of electricity in 2015. This decision led to the shaking down of employees at the project.
Presently, only 18 children of NTPC staffers study at the school. However, the court noted that there were over 510 other students plus teaching and non-teaching staff at the school. The school had accepted new admissions, too. The annual cost of the school stood at ₹2.5 crore.
“Apart from the fact the school has been functioning for 26 years, any dislocation would cause prejudice to students, teaching and non-teaching staff,” Justice Viswanathan observed.
He also drew attention to the economic loss that may be caused to establishments started around the school.
The court directed the Secretary, Ministry of Education, to meet with the NTPC Chairman; Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan Commissioner; Power Secretary; and the Kerala State Education Secretary in two weeks to decide the modalities of the functioning of the school in future.
A status report has to be filed in the apex court in four weeks. The case was listed for hearing next on March 25, 2025.
Published - February 11, 2025 06:02 pm IST
