Nagpur – Abhijit Deepke, the chief architect of the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), has launched a scathing critique of the chronic neglect afflicting tribal schools across India. In a press briefing in Nagpur, he argued that decades of administrative indifference have left the tribal education system in a state of decay.
Deepke announced that the CJP will kick off a new “Fix Tribal Schools” campaign on 17 September, starting from Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli district. The initiative seeks to shine a spotlight on the violation of tribal students’ right to education, the absence of basic infrastructure, and the bureaucratic hurdles that impede their learning.
As part of the outreach, party volunteers will travel to schools in predominantly tribal regions to verify the on‑ground reality of facilities, teacher availability, and student welfare. This follows a previous “Fix Schools” effort that targeted the broader network of government schools.
Criticising political priorities, Deepke pointed out that parties routinely spend lavish sums on party offices while simultaneously claiming a lack of funds for tribal residential schools.
He also challenged the narrative of nationwide economic progress, insisting that any genuine development must reach the tribal heartland. Deepke cited alarming mortality figures – more than 590 tribal students have died in Maharashtra over the past two years, including several snake‑bite incidents, and over 30 children have perished in Balaghat, Madhya Pradesh, within the last two months.
Regarding compensation, Deepke accused state governments of offering token assistance rather than meaningful financial support and dignity to grieving families.
According to his data, out of the 720 Eklavya Model Residential Schools sanctioned nationwide, 477 remain shuttered, depriving countless tribal children of education. He also raised concerns about the under‑representation of Scheduled Tribe (ST) students in higher‑education corridors, including prestigious institutions such as the IITs.
Deepke called for a thorough investigation into why tribal students and teachers are markedly absent from elite academic spaces, linking the trend to deep‑seated structural inequities. He urged the government to adopt concrete, measurable actions to reverse the decline of tribal schooling.
