Government not against USE: Shanmugam

CHENNAI: School Education Minister C Ve Shanmugam on Thursday reiterated that the AIADMK government was not against implementing the uniform school education (USE) system and that the system would be introduced soon after getting recommendations from an experts committee on improving the quality of education.The minister conveyed this to a delegation of CPM leaders led by its legislative party leader A Soundararajan, which met him at the Secretariat.The delegation comprising representatives of DYFI, submitted a representation to the minister explaining the apprehensions of the public, particularly the parents, students and educationists, on the AIADMK government’s announcement on USE.They urged him to set a deadline for the implementation of USE and take steps to put an end to the collection of exorbitant fees by the schools.Meanwhile, CPI State secretary D Pandian, in a statement here, said the Tamil Nadu government should say upfront whether or not it accepts USE in principle. The government should explain to the students and parents the reason for postponing its implementation, he said.However, All India Samathuva Makkal Katchi leader R Sarathkumar welcomed the decision to postpone uniform school education.While upgrading its quality, the State government should take into account the rural-urban divide on many issues relating to education, he said.