Conversion to co-ed school: Ganapath PTA’s wait continues

‘Future of 33 girl students at stake due to contradictory stands taken by officials’

General Education Minister V. Sivankutty recently said that parent-teacher associations (PTA) could take a call on converting girls-only and boys-only schools into co-education institutions. The PTA at the century-old Government Ganapath High Secondary School for Boys in Kozhikode city, however, says that some officials are blocking their attempts to do so.

The school, set up by Ganapath Rao in 1886, is one of the oldest in the city. It boasts of illustrious alumni such as former Union Minister V.K. Krishna Menon, freedom fighter-editor K.P. Kesava Menon and writer S.K. Pottekkatt. It has been around five years that the teachers and the PTA are trying hard to get government permission to admit girls into the school. PTA functionaries claim that the future of 33 girl students is at stake owing to the contradictory stands taken by successive deputy directors of education in Kozhikode.

The PTA general council had decided in 2016 to allow admission to girl students in the school. Based on the verbal permission from the then DDE, 33 girl students got admission from next year. However, the official permission was elusive owing to some other technical reasons. The official’s successor was not keen on any permission as the Right to Information Act gives students the choice to join the school in their neighbourhood. The girl students’ numbers were considered while fixing that year’s teachers’ posts. Various facilities for girls were arranged on the school premises too.

The incumbent DDE, however, took a stand against admitting girls. Seven girl students who got admitted this academic year had to be given transfer certificates. There are Class 10 as well as Class 9 students among the 33 students. If the government does not give its nod, it is not sure if they will be able to write the SSLC exams.

Meanwhile, the Director General of Education (DGE) has sought an explanation from the District Educational Officer (DEO) as well as the school headmaster why girl students were admitted without government approval. Sources in the Education Department said the school authorities had just sent an application to make it a co-ed institution.

PTA president K.G. Sabu said that another government school in Madappally had sought similar approval from the government in the same period. They were given permission recently, he said. Mr. Sabu said they were awaiting details of the report of the DEO to the DGE. “If the officials reject our demand, we will seek legal recourse,” he added.

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