'Quality of education not assessed'

By Our Staff Reporter

PONDICHERRY, SEPT. 9. Cent per cent enrolment of children aged between 6 and 14 and their retention in elementary education has not been achieved for lack of a coordinated effort at implementing free supply schemes and provision of buildings and support services such as water, electricity etc, says the report of the Comptroller and Auditor-General (CAG) for the year ended March 31, 2000 tabled in the Assembly by the Chief Minister, Mr. P. Shanmugham on Saturday.

There was a shortfall in enrolment. Dropouts and failures were high at the middle level and the quality of education was not assessed.

The shortfall in enrolment at the middle level ranged between 15 and 23 per cent, the dropout ratio between 0.4 and 2.5 at the primary level and 12.4 and 17.6 at the middle level. Infrastructure was inadequate in schools. Fortytwo per cent of schools were not provided with pucca buildings, and 87 per cent were without adequate sanitary facilities.

Inspite of the existence of posts of secondary grade teachers in excess of the norms, further recruitment was made in 1999-2000 resulting in a recurring liability of Rs. 80.52 lakhs per annum.

On the implementation of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act 1954, the report pointed out that a review of the implementation during 1995-2000 revealed that there was lack of coordination between the Food (Health) Authority and local authorities in issuing and renewing licences and no system was evolved to ensure that all food establishments were brought within the purview of licensing. The shortfall in collection of samples contributed to low capacity utilisation of the Food Testing Laboratory.

No prosecution was initiated in 53 per cent of the cases of adulteration noticed and no programme for increasing consumer awareness drawn up, the report said adding the implementation of the Act was deficient and was just carried on through the years.

Though the Pondicherry Pollution Control Committee was formed in 1992 to implement the Environmental Acts and Rules, no separate staff was sanctioned. Consequently, instead of testing the ground and surface water at regular intervals, it conducted tests only whenever complaints were received thereby defeating its objective.

The quality of drinking water was not satisfactory and there was no coordination among the departments concerned on maintaining quality of water supply. Industries discharged harmful effluents and dumped wastes in the open yard thereby contaminating groundwater. No common effluent treatment plants were provided nor was there any scientific documentation on the impacts of industrialisation.

On the Pondicherry Industrial Promotion Development and Investment Corporation limited (PIPDIC), the report said the share of the company in industrial growth in the Union Territory during the last five years ending 1999-2000 was only 45.68 per cent and 11.49 per cent in terms of assisted units and the amount invested respectively.

The company`s failure to insist on collateral security and delayed seizure of vehicles on default resulted in non recovery of Rs 2.14 crores extended to the transport sector. Sickness of the assisted units and consequent non-recovery of the dues was mostly on account of defective pre-sanction appraisal. Total investment of the Union Territory government in public sector undertakings, corporations and cooperative societies increased from Rs 313.44 crores in 1998-99 to Rs 358.79 crores in 1999- 2000. Returns from these investments during 1995- 1996 to 1999- 2000 were meagre and ranged from 0.2 to 0.4 per cent only. Ten out of eleven companies with a total investment of Rs 302.87 crores had not paid any dividend during 1999-2000 and seven of these companies had not declared any dividend during the past seven to nine years. The outstanding loans and advances had been rising year after year and reached Rs 698.35 crores in 1999- 2000.

Under `indiscriminate release' the report says of the share capital assistance of Rs 4.40 crores released to the Pondicherry Tourism and Transport Development Corporation Limited during 1997-2000, Rs. 2.62 crores were diverted for administrative expenses and salaries.

The Government continued to release share capital assistance to the Pondicherry Textiles Corporation Limited for modernisation, although the Corporation used it mostly to meet its losses.

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