Congress ruled Himachal for 30 years, BJP for 20 years; both of them together destroyed the education system and left a state of doom: Arvind Kejriwal
This is your chance to save your child’s future from being ruined; you must vote for an honest government: Arvind Kejriwal
The people of Himachal did not have an option till yet but now they do; come out and save your future: Arvind Kejriwal
AAP changed the life of 16 lac government school students in Delhi; if you give us one chance we’ll change the life of 8.5 lac students of Himachal too: Arvind Kejriwal
We aren’t here in lust for power; I am perhaps the first CM to have to resign from his seat in just 49 days: Arvind Kejriwal
If we could fix Delhi’s schools in just 5 years, what stopped Congress for 30 years and BJP for 20 years in Himachal?: Arvind Kejriwal
I challenge all political parties out there — if you have the courage, come out and ask for votes in the name of education & employment: Arvind Kejriwal
BJP-Congress are begging for another chance but AAP is saying we just want one chance and we won’t fail you: Arvind Kejriwal
If you want cheap politics, riots, hooliganism then go to them; if you want a better future for your children come to me: Arvind Kejriwal
Himachal’s 12th class results were 62 percent in 2019 and 76 percent in 2020 and there were 55 government schools in which not a single child could pass: Arvind Kejriwal
The pass rates of government schools in Delhi hit 99.7 percent, I don’t think that from 1947 till date, the results of government schools under any government have hit 99.7 percent: Arvind Kejriwal
People in Himachal want to send their children to private schools, while in Delhi even rich people are getting their children’s names cut from private schools and sending them to government schools: Arvind Kejriwal
Himachal sees paper leaks because the government here has bad intentions; AAP’s conscience is clear which is why there are no paper leaks in Delhi: Arvind Kejriwal
Delhi’s revolution wooed Punjab to AAP’s favour; now the transformation of Delhi & Punjab will spread its wings all over India: Bhagwant Mann
British enslaved us for 200 years all at once, and then the BJP and Congress enslaved us in 5-5 year instalments: Bhagwant Mann
NEW DELHI / HIMACHAL PRADESH:
The Aam Aadmi Party has made serious inroads in Himachal’s political grounds in the last few months. Taking a cue from the party’s successful campaigns of Punjab & Delhi, AAP National Convenor & Delhi Chief Minister Shri Arvind Kejriwal kicked off a series of his ‘Town-Hall’ events in the hill state today. The first town-hall was marked by AAP’s ‘Shiksha Samvad’ in Hamirpur with the parents & teachers of Himachal where Delhi CM Shri Arvind Kejriwal and Punjab CM Sardar Bhagwant Mann held discussions with the locals over education. Delhi CM Shri Arvind Kejriwal said, “Your child’s future is in your hands; vote for AAP in Himachal and transform the future of your children just like Delhi. Congress ruled Himachal for 30 years, BJP for 20 years; both of them together destroyed the education system and left a state of doom. This is your chance to save your child’s future from being ruined; you must vote for an honest government. The people of Himachal did not have an option till yet but now they do; come out and save your future. AAP changed the life of 16 lac government school students in Delhi; if you give us one chance we’ll change the life of 8.5 lac students of Himachal too. We aren’t here in lust for power; I am perhaps the first CM to have to resign from his seat in just 49 days. If we could fix Delhi’s schools in just 5 years, what stopped Congress for 30 years and BJP for 20 years in Himachal? I challenge all political parties out there — if you have the courage, come out and ask for votes in the name of education & employment.” At the same time, Punjab CM Sardar Bhagwant Mann said, “Delhi’s revolution wooed Punjab to AAP’s favour; now the transformation of Delhi & Punjab will spread its wings all over India. The British enslaved us for 200 years all at once, and then the BJP and Congress enslaved us in 5-5 year instalments.”
Shri Arvind Kejriwal said, “I want to have an interaction on the issue of education. Neither the BJP nor the Congress have ever raised this issue during an election campaign in India or Himachal Pradesh. They never dared to win a vote on education. They never cared about providing quality education to your children, so it was never a priority for them during elections. Most of those gathered here have children who attend school, but it is disheartening to note that the vast majority of them attend private schools, with only a few attending public schools. This depicts the state of education in Himachal Pradesh.”
He further highlighted the sorry state of education in Himachal Pradesh where the schools even lack the basic requirement of being considered as a school. This is a betrayal of the people of the State who have dreams and aspirations of having a life of dignity in their minds. He said, “14 lakh children go to school in Himachal Pradesh. 8.5 lakhs of them go to government schools and the rest of 5.5 lakhs study in private schools. This means that approximately 70% of them are enrolled in government schools. This shows that people in Himachal Pradesh cannot afford to send their children to private schools and hence, they have to unwillingly enrol them in government schools despite the fact that they are in a very bad condition. No parents want to send them to government schools by choice, not even a rickshaw walla or a labourer. But they are helpless. The future of 8.5 lakhs students is in the dark. 2000 schools are run by a single teacher. These schools are up till 5th or even 8th standard but they have only one teacher who cannot take care of all of them, let alone teach them. It is not possible for a single teacher to educate five or eight classes and hence, nobody learns anything. They are in a fix as to either teach them separately or all of them at once but they are helpless as well because it is not possible to teach each of them.”
The Delhi CM poured more data to substantiate his point of the abysmal condition of the education system in the state. He said, “The children lack even basic knowledge and they have to suffer even without fault. They are also children of India. Who will teach them? Even worse, there are schools with no teachers. There are 722 schools which are being run from a single room in Himachal Pradesh and five to eight classes are conducted in the same room. The government is making a mockery of the education system. Results of the 10th and 12th Board exams are also not very promising as only 62% and 76% of the students who appeared in the exams passed in 2019 and 2020. In 55 government schools, not even a single student was able to pass the board exams. A PIL filed before the High Court has been filed to stop the Government from demolishing a government school and constructing a shopping mall. This is the condition of the education system in Himachal Pradesh”
Shri Arvind Kejriwal asserted that a modern government has to be considered a failure if it cannot perform its fundamental duty of providing quality education to the children. He pressed on having a sense of urgency to not accept this system anymore and acting immediately to change it. He said, “Congress ruled in the State for 30 years and BJP ruled for 20 years. They did nothing except damage the education system. Now you have a choice of whether you want to ruin five more valuable years of your children’s education by bringing them to power again. They are in 8th standard, they would have passed the boards by the time the next elections will take place. Now is the chance to save their future before it gets too late. You have to avoid irreparable damage to their future. No one but the parents would be responsible if that happens. Previously, you did not have a choice but to bring either BJP or Congress to power but this time you do have one. You can save their future.”
CM Shri Arvind Kejriwal reiterated the commitment of his party to keep the most pressing issues in the lives of the citizens as their priority. He said, “We don’t know dirty tactics which are being played by politicians of other parties. We only know how to do public service. We are committed to the welfare of the country and in this pursuit, even if we have to sacrifice our lives, we will happily do that. We only do public service day and night. I have been running a government in Delhi for the past seven years and for the past three months, we have seen the remarkable work done by Shri Bhagwant Mann’s government which is only a glimpse of what’s in the pipeline for the people of Punjab. So much work is being done and he makes one announcement in the morning and one in the evening to ensure that progress is achieved at an unprecedented rate.”
The Delhi CM also shared his own experience of addressing the challenges in transforming the government school in his state. He said, “When we came to power in Delhi, the condition of government schools was even worse. There were no toilets in the schools. When a girl child wanted to use a toilet, she had to be sent back to her home for that purpose. There were no arrangements for drinking water and the premises were unclean. The ceilings were leaking and the walls were damaged. There were no benches and the students were forced to sit on a ‘taat’. Classes were conducted only for an hour and they used to play for the remaining time. There were no gates or guards to ensure their safety. Education was in a very bad state and the results were miserable. Even teachers were uninterested and they used to go back home after teaching for an hour.”
CM Shri Arvind Kejriwal also shared a personal anecdote of his work before holding the post of Delhi CM which gave him a deep understanding of systematic issues and the indomitable spirit of people to ensure quality education for their children. He said, “The condition of Delhi was much similar to today’s Himachal Pradesh where every parent, no matter if they’re rickshaw walla or a labourer, is looking to enrol their children in private schools the moment they earn enough money. I used to work in an NGO before joining politics wherein I was doing social service in the slums of Delhi. I observed that the people there were willing to sacrifice their food to ensure that they can send their children to private schools.”
The Delhi CM laid out the steps taken by the Delhi Government to overhaul the condition of education in the state. They adopted a pragmatic approach and worked tirelessly with noble intentions to achieve remarkable results. He said, “We had a vision when we came to power. Shri Manish Sisodia and I were resolute that we want to transform the government schools in Delhi. It was our dream but he had very less idea as to how to make it a reality. So we decided that we will allocate 25% of our budget of Delhi to education. And the same practice is being followed till date which is in the tune of ₹10000-15000 crore being spent every year on education and if you estimate the expenditure in the past seven years, it is around ₹8000-85000 crores. We have ensured that the entire money was spent on transforming the schools and it was our honesty and integrity which did not allow any official to take even a single penny out of this amount. Today the government schools have improved to a significant extent because we constructed new buildings with all the facilities after demolishing the old ones. Now there are swimming pools and lifts in the schools. Around 1100-1150 schools are there in Delhi with new buildings.”
He gave proof of the foresightedness of his government to estimate the impact of their action on the right parameters. They have been able to achieve one milestone after the other which has brought an attitudinal shift in the mind of citizens of Delhi. He said, “And the challenge did not end there. There was an even bigger task of achieving better results. Today, in the 12th Board exam, 99.97% of students studying in government schools have passed the exam with flying colours. This is unprecedented in the history of independent India and no government has been able to achieve this in the past. This has brought a shift in attitude because the parents now do not want to transfer their children from government schools to private schools even after they have the finances to do so. Winds of change are flowing in Delhi. Now 4 lakhs children have been transferred from private schools to government schools. This is not less than a miracle. This even includes rich people.”
Shri Arvind Kejriwal also emphasised the benefits of knowledge sharing in improving governance and accelerating the pace of development. He said, “I had invited Bhagwant Mann and his officials to visit Delhi for a tour. This included their Chief Secretary and Education Secretary. Senior officials of theirs visited the government schools in Delhi. One of the officers asked the students who all have taken a transfer from a private school. Many of them raised their hands. When he asked which private school you were studying in earlier, the response was St. Columba’s. St. Columba’s School is the biggest private school in Delhi. It is impossible for the middle class to take admission there. Even students from schools like DPS took admission in government schools. Today, people ask me what is your biggest success in the seven years of my tenure. I say that it is the reforms brought in education which give me the highest satisfaction because it has changed the lives of 16 lakh students and their families. Now is your time to bring similar changes in the lives of 8.5 lakh students of Himachal Pradesh.”
He further spoke of the success of the Delhi Model and said, “IITs are one of the best engineering colleges not just in India but even the world. It is extremely hard to get admission there because of the cutthroat competition. I also studied at an IIT and I know the amount of hard work required to get admission there. You will be amazed to hear that more than 400 students studying in government schools have cleared the IIT entrance exam every year. You can see the stark difference between the condition of government schools in Delhi and Himachal Pradesh where even a single student in 55 government schools was unable to clear even 12th Board exams. I’ll give you an example of a government school kid from Delhi. There’s a student named Rajiv Rai. He took admission in IIT Guwahati’s Mechanical Engineering course this year. His father works as a make-shift roadside mechanic and earns some Rs 9,000 a month. His father studied till class three and his mother never went to school. Once Rajiv graduates, he’ll get a package of at least 2 lacs per month. Just imagine if the Delhi Government didn’t transform its schools would it be possible? Would this boy make it to the IIT? There are so many students whose families compel them out of schools and put them to work because they’re getting no education at all. But on the other hand, the Delhi Government is alleviating poverty by education. Over 1.5 lac students graduate from our schools each year. Their future was in the dark earlier but today I can vouch that these students will become engineers, doctors and entrepreneurs. Not one of them will remain unemployed.”
He explained Delhi’s Business Blasters program and added, “These days our schools have become hubs for experiments. We’re ensuring that once these children step out of the government schools they become good citizens who contribute to the society and can sustain themselves and their families. We don’t want them to join the bandwagon of job seekers. It’s okay to look for a job but want the point of staying jobless and hopeless? This is an antecedent left to us by the British. They wanted clerks and that is the mindset they left our society with. Everyone wants a job in this country. Our country doesn’t realise the potential of our youth. They don’t understand their talent. Which is why we started a unique experiment in our schools. Students of 11th & 12th are given Rs 2,000 each to think of a startup idea based on which they can be funded by real investors. They can team up and pool their money. We received 52,000 business ideas from our school students. We then organised an investors’ conclave for our students. We called businesspersons from all over the country to a five-star hotel and then asked our students to present to them. Just imagine the confidence our students have that they can stand at such a platform and seek investments in their business. One such idea came from Harsh. He teamed up with 8 students. They pooled Rs 16 thousand and developed a new kind of manure-fertiliser. They started selling their product and earned Rs 64,000 in six months. His team got Rs 16 lac as investment from industrialists. Such students are stepping up the ladder to make the country proud.”
He went ahead to talk about how AAP’s governments have forced private schools to fall in line and stop exploitation. He said, “We’ve to now transform the schools of Himachal too. The government schools are in a terrible state. Parents want to give good education to their children so they send them to private schools. Private School owners then exploit the parents in the name of fees. If a parent raises their voice, they kick the student out. One of the parents mentioned about the loot of private schools in the state in the townhall too. Most private schools are either owned by politicians or their own men. But the AAP doesn’t believe in such dishonesty. We put a blanket ban on fee hikes in private schools once we came to Delhi. We formed a team of CAs and got audits done for each school. Turned out these schools were minting money with 40-50 crores in FDs alone. Are schools supposed to be run for FDs? We made them break the FDs and return the money to every student who graduated from their school in the last five years, this was a first of its kind in India. Mann Sahab just took charge of the Punjab government. Usually, the schools raise their fees in the first week of April. But he issued orders saying that no private school would raise their tuition. Private schools also used to specify that uniforms and books must be bought from specific shops. Mann Sahab ordered that the uniform & books can be bought from wherever it was desired by parents. Some schools ignored the order and raised tuition. They issued the order again today and reduced the fees while acting against them.”
He added, “This country needs a government that’s honest and accountable. If an honest government comes, then no one will dare to loot the people. The people of Delhi changed the future of their children with their vote for AAP. In 2015 the people of Delhi gave one chance to AAP, today the future of the children of the people of Delhi has changed completely. Now the Congress has zero seats in Delhi, BJP has 8. People love the Aam Aadmi Party. I have not come here asking for votes for myself. I used to work as a Commissioner in Income Tax earlier. Leaving that behind, I started working inside the slums of Delhi. After that I became the Chief Minister of Delhi and left the chair within 49 days. We have not come to gain power. We don’t ask for votes in the name of caste-religion, we don’t take power by distributing money & alcohol. We don’t do all this. We work for the country. If we could fix Delhi’s schools in 5 years, the Congress ruled Himachal Pradesh for 30 years, why could they not do it. The BJP ruled for 20 years, why could they not do it? We will not ask you for another chance. We are asking for just one chance. We won’t fail you.”
He concluded, “Some people were saying that papers get leaked a lot here. Something is fishy. I went to Haryana, where there is also a BJP government. Paper leaks happen there too. I went to Gujarat, there is a BJP government there too, all the papers get leaked there too. I always say that BJP’s name will be recorded in the Guinness Book of World Records for leaking the most number of papers. The difference is that their intentions are bad. Our conscience is clear, papers do not get leaked in Delhi. I seek votes in the name of education, healthcare and employment. Today I challenge all the parties out there. If you have the courage, ask for votes in the name of education. If you have courage, show it by asking for votes in the name of employment. I don’t know how to do politics like they do. If you want dirty politics, corruption, riots and hooliganism, go to them. If you want to make a better future for your children then come to AAP. Himachal gave 30 years to Congress and 20 years to BJP. I am asking for just 5 years for AAP. You will not regret it.”
Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Bhagwant Mann also spoke on the occasion. He said, “The people of Himachal Pradesh are also eager to see the remarkable progress made in Delhi and Punjab replicated in their state. The Delhi model has influenced and inspired development in Punjab, and the impact will soon be felt throughout the country. As you may have read in the newspaper, the people of Punjab eagerly await welfare announcements twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening. We are 75 years behind where we ought to be. First, the British enslaved us for 200 years all at once, and then the BJP and Congress enslaved us in 5-5 year instalments. That’s the only difference between both regimes. The people of Himachal Pradesh were helpless. They are not to blame because they had no other choice. When one of them subjected them to misery, they approached the other with hope, and when the latter treated them similarly, they returned to the former. The same was true for Punjab. But this time, they were determined to see a change and overthrew both of them. You’ll be surprised to learn that our government is flooded with enthusiastic young people between the ages of 34 and 35. The person who defeated the incumbent Chief Minister Channi is a common man who used to work in a mobile repair shop. His mother is still employed as a maintenance worker in a government school. I never imagined myself as a Chief Minister because I had no political experience. Nobody in my family was involved in politics. But I know of one party that can provide me with an opportunity to do public service: the Aam Aadmi Party.”