Belauri Municipality in Kanchanpur has merged four local schools. The municipality stated that the merger and level adjustments (downgrading of classes) were carried out as schools were experiencing low student enrollment.
According to Khemraj Joshi, the Chief Administrative Officer of the municipality, the decision follows a monitoring inspection conducted last Baisakh. The inspection revealed that the local basic schools failed to enroll even 50 students per class, necessitating the school mergers and level adjustments. He further informed that the level adjustments for four basic schools and the complete merger of another four basic schools came into effect from Ashadh 28.
Before implementing this step, 31 community schools were operating within Belauri Municipality; however, following the merger, the number has come down to 27. According to the municipality's education branch, more than 10,000 students are currently enrolled across these schools.
Amit Prasad Bhatta, the chief of the municipal education branch, provided details on the specific school adjustments:
- Janapriya Basic School located in Belauri Municipality-2 has been merged into Laxmi Basic School in Jabadiya.
- BP Smriti Basic School located in Chargharuwa, Belauri Municipality-2, has been merged into Janasewa Basic School in Teduwa.
- Gauri Shankar Basic School located in Motipur, Belauri-3, has been merged into Saraswati Secondary School in Butabari.
- Agrasan Basic School located in Motipur, Belauri-4, has also undergone a merger.
Authorities stated that students previously enrolled in grades 4 and 5 before the merger will begin studying at the newly integrated schools starting next month. Branch Chief Bhatta added that this restructuring is expected to save the municipality up to 1 million rupees annually.
In addition to the mergers, the municipality has adjusted the levels of four other schools due to the steadily declining number of students each year. The adjustments include:
- Shakti Basic School in Kanpur, Belauri-8, which previously ran up to grade 5, has been downgraded to grade 3.
- Shuklaphanta Basic School in Belauri-1, which also operated up to grade 5, will now only run up to grade 3.
- Krishna Prasad Basic School in Belauri-5 and Saraswati Basic School in Belauri Municipality-1, both formerly running up to grade 5, have similarly been downgraded to grade 3.
However, the local government has remained silent regarding the potential impact of these mergers on the students. Despite some of the integrated schools being up to 3 kilometers away, the municipality has yet to make a formal decision to address the potential inconveniences students face. Chief Administrative Officer Joshi mentioned that the merger was executed following a decision by the municipal executive, which deemed the distance appropriate as the schools are not excessively far apart.
