‘Vidya Bus Yatra’ gets rolling to press for education reforms in Telangana
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Former chairperson of Telangana Education Commission (TEC), Akunuri Murali on Tuesday launched the Vidya Bus Yatra along with activists of the Telangana Praja Front, seeking to build pressure on the State government to strengthen public education.
The yatra, launched in the backdrop of the comprehensive Telangana Education Policy 2026 brought out by TEC, was flagged off at the B.R. Ambedkar Statue on NTR Marg here by Mr. Murali, along with members of the Pathasala Sadhana Samithi and Balala Hakkula Parirakshana Vedika.
“The education system is in a prolonged diseased condition in Telangana; it is in the ICU now. It needs urgent treatment,” Mr. Murali said.
“Government after government has merely pretended to be doing a lot to improve the education sector. By showcasing one or two initiatives, the government is only creating an illusion of progress and buying time. This is simply not enough,” he added.
The vehicle for the yatra is a Mahindra SML air-conditioned mini-bus with a seating capacity of about 20. It prominently displays the yatra’s three key demands: Telangana Public Schools, based on the Arutla model, in every mandal in the State; regulation of fees in private schools and junior colleges; and allocation of 18% of the State’s annual budget to education. The activists have also demanded that each of these be backed by specific legislation.
Mr. Murali, who toured the State as a member of the TEC and while working on the 2026 education policy, said, “Almost 95% of government schools in Telangana cannot even be called schools; they are unfit and lack basic standards.”
The yatra, which began on Tuesday, will cover all 10 erstwhile districts of the State by September 27. The team will visit government schools, interact with local communities and parents, and assess the challenges they face in accessing affordable, quality education. It also plans to hold conferences with parents of government and private school students in each district.
The Telangana Praja Front yatra team comprises retired professor of journalism at Osmania University and activist Padmaja Shaw, retired bureaucrats and activists Akunuri Murali, M.V. Reddy and M.Champalal, and N. Rubina, T. Nirmala, Srujana Yadav, Muppuri Kumaranna, Nikhil Vijaya Krishna, and Palakuri Ashok Kumar.
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