Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS)

Why in the News?

The Union government is pushing to set up 740 Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) for tribal students — one each in every sub-district with at least a 20,000-odd Scheduled Tribe population.

Key Points:

About Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS):

• 1997-98: It was first introduced to provide quality education to tribal students with residential facilities in remote corners. 
• Aim: To build schools at par with the Jawahar Navoday Vidyalayas and Kendriya Vidyalayas. 
• Until 2018-19, the scheme was overseen by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs while maximum control of identifying new schools, recruiting, management and admissions lying with State governments.
• In 2018-19, the Central Government revamped the scheme.
• It introduced a “population criteria” for setting EMRS.
  • One EMRS in every sub-district which has at least a 20,000-odd Scheduled Tribe population, which must be 50% of the total population in that area. 
• The new guidelines gave the Union government more power to sanction schools and manage them. 
• A National Education Society for Tribal Students (NESTS) was set up and entrusted with the management of the State Education Society for Tribal Students (SESTS), which would run the EMRS on the ground.
• The new guidelines also reduced the minimum land requirement from 20 acres to 15 acres.

Concerns: 

• Shortage of teachers: The new guidelines allowed NESTS to suggest measures for teacher recruitment, but they never mandated that States follow them.
• Currently, all functional EMRS had a teaching strength of just under 4,000 against the 11,340 recommended by NESTS.

Current Status:

• As of November, a total of 688 schools have been sanctioned, of which 392 are functional.

News Source: The Hindu