KPS Magnet Schools scheme will shut thousands of schools, claims AIDSO

The All India Democratic Students’ Organisation (AIDSO), Mysuru district committee, on Tuesday alleged that the State government was preparing to close or merge a large number of government schools across the State under the newly announced KPS-Magnet Schools Scheme, contrary to official claims that ‘not a single school will be closed’.

Addressing a press conference here, the AIDSO leaders claimed they had examined government documents and circulars that indicate large-scale school mergers, particularly in rural areas. They claimed that as many as 1,666 government schools in Mysuru district alone have been reportedly identified for ‘closure or merger’.

Quoting a circular dated October 15, 2025, plans are afoot to establish 6,000 KPS Magnet Schools, one in every Gram Panchayat. In the first phase, 800 schools have been shortlisted across the State. A pilot project has already been launched at Honganooru in Channapatna taluk in Ramanagara district, where six schools within a six-km radius have been ‘ordered to merge with the newly designated Magnet School’.

Villagers have protested the move, demanding that their local schools be strengthened instead, the leaders said.

The AIDSO has also expressed concern over proposed amendments to service rules that would require pre-university college lecturers to teach high-school classes. “This is perhaps an indication that government PU colleges too may be at risk of closure in the coming days,” it said.

The organisation criticised the government for planning to repurpose the buildings of schools that are slated to be closed.

At the press conference, the leaders claimed that Minister for School Education Madhu Bangarappa had reportedly stated that vacant school buildings would be handed over to self-help groups, contradicting the government’s claim that no school was being shut.

The AIDSO leaders said the move to close or merge schools undermines the legacy of social reformers and thinkers such as Jyotirao Phule, Savitribai Phule, who worked to expand access to education. They called upon students, parents, teachers, and the public to unite against what they described as a ‘direct attack on government education’.

Subhash Bettadakoppa, AIDSO State treasurer, Chandrakala, district president; Nitin, district secretary; Swati, district vice-president; and other office-bearers were present at the press conference.