TRS demands new Navodaya schools in Telangana

The TRS MPs on Friday staged a walkout from both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha protesting against the Centre’s failure to sanction new Navodaya Schools to Telangana in the last eight years. 

TRS Parliamentary Party leader K Keshava Rao and Lok Sabha floor leader Nama Nageshwara Rao issued notices of adjournament motion seeking discussion on establishment of Navodaya schools in the State. This was the fourth consecutive day that the TRS MPs staged walkout on issues pertaining to Telangana State.

In the notices, Keshava Rao and Nageshwara Rao stated that the establishment of Navodaya Vidyalayas in all districts was mandatory as per the existing norms. Hence, they wanted the Centre to establish them in all the 33 districts in the State to ensure academic excellence for students before the new academic year begins. The adjournment motions, however, were rejected.

Soon after the House met, the TRS members led by Nageswara Rao rushed to the Well of the House demanding a discussion on the Navodaya schools sanctioned by the Centre. Raising placards and shouting slogans, the TRS members demanded that the government prevent the alleged suicides by the unemployed youths and sought immediate action to be initiated to fill



one million vacant posts in the Central government.

With Speaker Om Birla did not allowing them to raise the issue, the TRS MPs staged a walkout. Similar scenes were witnessed in Rajya Sabha forcing the TRS MPs to stage a walkout. Later, they staged a protest at the statue of Mahatma Gandhi on the Parliament premises.

Speaking to mediapersons on the occasion, Nageshwara Rao said that despite repeated requests both inside and outside the Parliament, the Centre remained indifferent towards Telangana. He reminded that the TRS raised issues pertaining to paddy procurement, ST reservations, unemployment and Navodaya Vidyalayas in the last four days, but there was response from the Centre on any of these issues. 

“We are not being even allowed to speak and raise the issues in the Parliament. Hence, we were forced to stage walkout,” he explained.

He reminded that there were only nine Navodaya Vidyalayas in Telangana against 33 districts and the Centre did not allot new schools even after Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao personally requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He stated that smaller States like Assam had 27, Manipur 11 and Tripura seven.