Minister says UDF will decide on PM SHRI soon
UDF leadership to take final call on PM SHRI scheme in Keralam
Bharatmorning.com – Keralam’s government is preparing to take a fresh decision on the Pradhan Mantri Schools for Rising India, or PM SHRI, programme after receiving another communication from the Union government. General education minister N Shamsudheen said the matter will be considered by chief minister VD Satheesan and the United Democratic Front leadership before the state formally responds.
The renewed correspondence from New Delhi has brought an earlier political dispute back into focus. While the scheme is intended to improve facilities and learning environments at government schools, it has attracted strong ideological objections in Keralam from both the Left Democratic Front and the ruling UDF.
Centre seeks the state’s consent
Shamsudheen said the Union education secretary had written to the state’s chief secretary seeking clarity on Keralam’s position. The Union government has indicated that it can move ahead with the programme only if the state gives its approval.
“We have got another communication from the Union government asking us to convey our decision regarding PM-SHRI. They said that the scheme can be taken forward only with our consent. The letter was sent by the Union education secretary to the chief secretary”.
The education minister said he would not make the decision independently, stressing that the issue requires a collective political discussion within the governing alliance. The chief minister will communicate the government’s ultimate decision after those deliberations.
“I cannot decide on it alone. The chief minister and the UDF leadership will sit together and discuss it. The CM will convey the final decision,”
Reservations remain within the UDF
Shamsudheen, who is a member of the Indian Union Muslim League, said the UDF had opposed PM SHRI before the April-May elections and has not abandoned its concerns. He said the details of the proposal must be carefully examined before the state settles its position.
“We still hold reservations about it. Therefore, its details need to be examined,”
The debate in Keralam is not limited to questions of funding or school infrastructure. The LDF and UDF have both argued that the programme is linked to a wider BJP-RSS ideological agenda. Their concern is that education could be shaped around what they describe as “majoritarian nationalism” and that school learning may be “saffronised” in states participating in the initiative.
Those objections make the decision politically significant. For the state government, the question is whether possible improvements to public-school facilities can be separated from concerns over curriculum, educational policy and state autonomy. The UDF leadership is expected to assess those issues while reviewing the Centre’s latest request.
Earlier agreement complicated the issue
Keralam’s present situation is also shaped by an agreement made under the previous LDF administration. That government signed a memorandum of understanding in Delhi in 2025 for implementation of the scheme. However, resistance from the Communist Party of India led the LDF government to place implementation on hold.
The earlier MoU has created a difficult policy and political backdrop for the UDF. In June, chief minister VD Satheesan said the state was already a signatory and could not simply withdraw on its own because the previous government had entered into the agreement. He maintained that the UDF government had effectively been compelled to implement the programme.
At the same time, Satheesan made clear that participation would not mean allowing outside intervention in deciding what students are taught. The state, he said, would not permit interference in the selection of curriculum for schools included under PM SHRI.
That position points to the distinction Keralam’s leaders are seeking to make: the state may consider the administrative and infrastructure elements of a centrally sponsored school initiative, while insisting that educational content remains protected from political influence. The final response to the Union government will show whether the UDF believes those conditions can be maintained in practice.
What the PM SHRI programme seeks to achieve
PM SHRI is designed to upgrade 14,500 schools across the country and is projected to benefit 1.8 million students. The selected schools are meant to function as model institutions, with stronger infrastructure and an environment intended to reflect the goals of the National Education Policy 2020.
For families, teachers and students, the practical importance of the scheme lies in what upgraded government schools could offer: improved physical facilities and institutions positioned as examples for other schools. But in Keralam, the programme’s educational and ideological implications have become as important as its promised infrastructure benefits.
The state’s upcoming decision will therefore carry consequences beyond a single administrative proposal. It will determine whether Keralam proceeds with an agreement signed by the previous government, seeks safeguards around curriculum and state control, or continues to keep implementation in abeyance. For now, the UDF leadership’s discussions will decide how the state answers the Centre’s request for consent.
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