Student monks in sathyagraha outside UGC

February 21, 2012, 9:45 pm , The Island.

by Dasun Edirisinghe

Student monks, from the Buddhist and Pali University, yesterday commenced an indefinite Sathyagraha opposite University Grants Commission (UGC) and the Higher Education Ministry at Ward Place after failing in their attempt to enter the premises demanding a discussion.

Bhikkhu undergraduates marched to the UGC from the University of Sri Jayewardenepura at around 10.00 a.m. against the government’s alleged move to close down the Buddhist and Pali University.

As ministry officials refused an unscheduled discussion, they waited there for five hours before starting the Sathyagraha, forcing traffic along Ward Place, between Borella and Town Hall, to be held up for about two hours. The traffic congestion extended to surrounding areas too.

President of the Students Council of the University, Ven. Panama Ananda Thera said that the university administration had yet to enroll the new batch which included around 100 Buddhist monks.

According to him, every year the Higher Education Ministry enrolled the new batch in January but this year’s batch had yet to be enrolled even at the end of February.

"The government is going to close down the university without recruiting students," Ananada thera said adding they would protest against it.

He said that the university administration suspended 30 of their colleagues when they protested against the ministry’s delay in enrolling the new batch of students.

The ministry did not even announce a date to enroll the new batch, the student monk said.

Secretary to the Higher Education Ministry Dr. Sunil Jayantha Navaratne said that interviews to enroll the new batch were being held at present.

He denied the student monks’ claim that the government was attempting to close down the university.

Docs want govt. to change school admission circular

February 21, 2012, 12:00 pm , The Island.

By Don Asoka Wijewardena

The Government Medical Officers’ Association yesterday asked the government to change the contents of the Circular, issued by the Education Ministry, on admission of doctors’ children to national schools.

The current circular had stipulated that any person wishing to admit children should be a resident of a particular area for five years. As a result, when annual transfers were made by the Health Ministry, they were driven from pillar to post by officials in the Education Ministry, GMOA President Dr. Padeniya told a media conference at the GMOA head office in Colombo.

Dr. Padeniya claimed that around 220 school-going children of doctors and consultants were idling at home for want of national schools to continue their education. Although some doctors had officially received annual transfers they were unable to get their children admitted to national schools in the respective area.

He said that though most school principals had expressed their willingness to enroll doctors’ children , the Education Ministry, especially the Secretary to the Ministry, had refused to issue relevant letters to principals. This tug-o-war had deprived the children from pursuing their education.

A few months ago Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena had visited the Education Ministry and handed over a file with list of names of doctors’ children to be given schools as the doctors had been transferred. But Minister Sirisena’s intervention to resolve the schooling problem of doctors’ children had fallen on deaf years. Unlike Ranaviru families, only 150 to 200 children of doctor had to be accommodated in national schools, Dr. Padeniya stressed.

The GMOA President said that in 2005, the Cabinet approved the provision of schools for doctors’ children to retain their services in the country. Ministers had realized the importance of schooling of doctors’ children and had made all arrangements to admit doctors’ children to the nearest national schools when annual transfers were made.