Cabinet nod to STARS project for six states

NEW DELHI:  The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the implementation of the Strengthening Teaching-Learning and Results for States (STARS) project with a total cost of Rs 5718 crore, with the financial support of the World Bank amounting to $500 million or about Rs 3,700 crore.

The STARS project, envisaged under the National Education Policy, will be rolled out as a new centrally sponsored scheme under which the National Assessment Centre is also being set up.  It covers 6 states — Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Odisha —which will be supported for various interventions for improving the quality of education. 

It has also been proposed to implement a Asian Development Bank funded project in 5 states — Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Assam. Under this, all states will partner with one other state for sharing their experiences and best practices.

The STARS project seeks to support the states in developing, implementing, evaluating and improving interventions with direct linkages to improved education outcomes and school to work transition strategies for improved labour market outcomes. 

The focus and components of STARS project are aligned with the objectives of quality based learning outcomes, said education minister Ramesh Pokhariyal Nishank. “The project envisions improving the overall monitoring and measurement activities in school education system through interventions in selected states,” the ministry said.