The Tamil Nadu government has approached the Supreme Court, accusing the Central Government of not releasing ₹2,291.30 crore that was approved to support school education in the State. These funds were meant for the Samagra Shiksha Scheme (SSS), which helps schools provide quality education, especially for poor children.
The case has been filed under Article 131 of the Constitution, which allows a State to directly sue the Central Government if there is a legal or constitutional dispute.
According to Tamil Nadu, ₹2,151.59 crore — the Centre’s 60% share for the 2024–25 financial year — has not been released. The State is also asking for 6% interest on this amount from May 1, 2025, until payment is made.
Tamil Nadu says that the Centre is unfairly linking the release of funds to the State’s acceptance of the NEP 2020 and the PM SHRI Schools Scheme, which promotes NEP through model schools.
The State government says it opposes NEP, especially the three-language policy, which includes Hindi. This policy is not popular in Tamil Nadu, where the people mostly speak Tamil and are against being forced to learn Hindi.
Tamil Nadu also said that the Project Approval Board (PAB) had already approved the State’s education plan in February 2024, so the funds should have been released.
The State reminded the Court that the Supreme Court had earlier refused to force Tamil Nadu to adopt NEP, stating that policies cannot be imposed under Article 32, which is meant to protect fundamental rights — not force government decisions.
Tamil Nadu believes that the Centre’s decision to withhold funds:
- Is unfair and unconstitutional
- Violates the Right to Education Act, 2009, which requires the Centre to cover 60% of education scheme costs
- Is an attack on federalism, where States have the right to make their own decisions
The State also pointed out that it had written to the Centre on July 6, 2024, asking to change some rules in the PM SHRI MoU which make NEP implementation compulsory, but got no response.
Tamil Nadu now wants the Supreme Court to:
- Order the Centre to release the withheld funds
- Stop linking unrelated policies like NEP to fund disbursal
- Cancel two letters from the Centre (dated February 23 and March 7, 2024) which made NEP implementation a condition to get the funds
