The Karnataka government, which is planning to start the Karnataka Public Schools (KPSs) across the State, has proposed to merge nearby government schools with what it calls ‘KPS Magnet’ schools that have good facilities.
On a pilot, the KPS school at Honganuru in Channapatna taluk of Bengaluru South District has been identified as a magnet school, and steps have been taken to merge as many as seven government Lower Primary Schools (LPS) and Higher Primary Schools (HPS) in nearby villages with this school.
The Honganuru school was in the news recently for its alumni pumping in ₹14 crore to refurbish it and add new facilities.
Educationists and student organisations have expressed objection to this move to close government schools in the name of ‘merging’ them.
Magnet school project
To strengthen government schools, the Department of School Education and Literacy (DSEL) has decided to upgrade 800 government schools into KPSs at a cost of about ₹3,000 crore. These schools will provide education from pre-primary to II PUC under one roof.
However, smaller schools within five to six km radius will be merged with magnet schools with up to 1,200 students selected, based on enrolment, location, and infrastructure.
Under the pilot project, the schools to be merged at Honganuru are: LPS in Hodike Hosahalli village with 77 students, LPS in Kanni Doddi with 82 students, HPS in Ammalli Doddi with 31 students, HPS Santhe Mogenahalli with 100 students, LPS in Mogenahalli Doddi with 20 students, LPS in Sunnaghatta with 80 students, and HPS in Channanke Gowdana Doddi with two students.
The Block Education Officer (BEO), Channapatna, has issued a circular in this regard and has instructed the officials to list and certify all the physical documents, teaching aids, furniture and all the school materials in the schools to be merged and hand them over to KPS Honganuru.
“Steps should be taken to issue the Transfer Certificates (TCs) of these school children. Transport arrangements have already been made for the convenience of school children and appropriate steps should be taken to ensure that children get transport facilities at the specified time,” reads the circucular.
The Deputy Director of Public Instruction (DDPI), Bengaluru South District, visited these schools and discussed with the headmasters and SDMC presidents, members, and parents. He also instructed the teachers to convince the parents about this.
Opposition to merger
Educationists and student organisations have expressed strong opposition to this.
Educationist V.P. Niranjanaradhya said, “This move by the government is a conspiracy to close government schools. The National Education Policy (NEP-2020) mainly proposes the merger of schools and the start of cluster schools. As part of this, the previous BJP government had proposed the merger of 13,800 schools in 2022. However, the State government is now planning to merge 25,000 government schools by starting 800 KPS. Closing schools on such a large scale means implementing the NEP in the State. It is ridiculous that the State government, which is defying the NEP and going to implement the State Education Policy, is again continuing the elements of the NEP.”
Ajay Kamath, State secretary of AIDSO, a student organisation, said, “The government had earlier, under public pressure and after widespread protests, promised not to close or merge any government school. However, by introducing the KPS, the government is once again attempting to centralise resources and dismantle small and rural schools, thereby weakening the existing government school network. This will inevitably lead to loss of access to nearby neighbourhood schools for children from poor and rural backgrounds, especially among girl students.”
Published – November 12, 2025 10:26 pm IST
