RM1 billion spent on Tamil schools

PETALING JAYA: Since 2009, the government had allocated close to RM1 billion for land acquisitions for the construction and upgrading of Tamil schools in the country.

Deputy Education Minister Datuk P. Kamalanathan ( pix) said Tamil schools have never been neglected.

“Our prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak has always paid close attention to the progress of Tamil schools and in fact, the total allocation received was RM986.21 million since 2009.”

He said there were currently a total of 530 Tamil schools (SJKT) in the country, of which 158 are owned by the government.

The other SJKTs are government-aided schools.

“Over the last three years, seven new Tamil schools have been built at a cost of RM130 million,” he said.

“Early this year, Najib announced a RM1.8 million allocation to build pre-school classrooms at seven Tamil schools nationwide.

“In last year’s budget, RM10 million was allocated for the construction of 50 pre-school classrooms in Tamil schools nationwide, but it was insufficient to accommodate the pre-school enrolment,” he added.

Kamalanathan said Tamil schools in the country have come a long way and apart from producing straight-A students, there was also strong emphasis on sports and other co-curriculum activities.

“Many still think Tamil schools are in poor condition and lack the necessary facilities to provide students with quality education.

“Under the present government, plenty has been done for these schools and parents can be assured of the best quality and facilities for their children.”

He said the Education Ministry was also constantly monitoring the progress of these schools and more projects are in the pipeline to further enhance their quality.