STAFF REPORTER
GUWAHATI: After the amalgamation, merger or shifting of schools in the state, large tracts of land, properties, and infrastructure have been left vacant and remain vulnerable to encroachment and misuse. Against this backdrop, the Assam government reiterated and issued strong directions for the protection and proper utilization of unused school property.
The Director of Elementary Education (DEE), Assam, has instructed all District Elementary Education Officers (DEEOs) to strictly implement government guidelines already in place for safeguarding vacant, unattended, and unused land and buildings arising out of school amalgamation, provincialization or shifting to base schools. After a Cabinet decision on March 20, 2025, the Department of School Education issued a memorandum, which acknowledges that, although the government has already laid down clear directions on how to protect school land and property, many sites are yet to be effectively secured on the ground, increasing the risk of illegal occupation of valuable public assets.
As per the guidelines, once a school is closed due to amalgamation or shifting, the land will be deemed to have been formally relinquished (given 'Istafa') by the School Management Committee (SMC/SMDC) or the Education Department. The District Commissioner (DC) will then be empowered to allot the land to any government department or agency. In cases where allotment to a non-government organization (NGO) or private entity is proposed, prior approval of the Revenue and Disaster Management Department will be mandatory.
To ensure institutional oversight, a District Level Committee for unused property of amalgamated or merged schools will be constituted in every district. The District Commissioner will serve as the chairperson, while the Inspector of Schools will act as the Member Secretary. Other members will include the District Elementary Education Officer, the Circle Officer of the concerned revenue circle, the Block Development Officer, the Block Elementary Education Officer, one retired principal or headmaster, and one serving principal or headmaster of a government or provincialized school.
Before any proposal is placed before the committee, the Member Secretary and the District Elementary Education Officer must jointly examine the case, verify all relevant documents, and certify that there is no pending court litigation related to the school amalgamation order or the land concerned.
Based on the recommendations of the district-level committee, the District Commissioner will grant permission for utilization of the unused school land and infrastructure by signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the concerned government, semi-government, or NGO authority.
It needs to be mentioned that as many as 2,980 schools-from the elementary to the secondary level-have been merged or amalgamated across Assam over the past five years.
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