Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI: If the number of class IX students who got bicycles in 2023-24 and the number of beneficiaries under this scheme for the academic year 2024-25 in the state have anything to go by, the enrolment of students in class IX in government and provincialised schools has certainly dropped by around 45,000.
In its last meeting on September 24, 2024, the state cabinet approved Rs 148.55 crore for the distribution of bicycles to 3,23,640 students of class IX (both boys and girls). The scheme aims at promoting regularity of students in schools and acting as a deterrent against school dropout at the secondary level. The government believes that the bicycles will ensure ease of communication and security to cover the distance from students' homes to schools and vice versa on time.
The government distributed bicycles to 3,69,454 students of class IX (boys and girls) spending Rs 161 crore on October 13, 2023, at a massive function. When one compares these two figures of students in class IX in 2023-24 and 2024-25, it becomes crystal clear that the enrolment of students in class IX has fallen by 45,814. The fall in enrolment of students in class IX has also led to the fall in the amount of money to be spent for purchasing bicycles by 12.45 crore.
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