Odisha: 133 govt-run high schools to get modern facilities

BERHAMPUR: As many as 133 government-run high schools, including 22 Odisha Adarsha Vidyalayas, in Ganjam district are set to get a facelift under the high school transformation project of the government's 5-T initiative.
"The work has already begun in the schools that have been identified for the programme in the 22 blocks of the district. We are aiming to complete it before August 15," district collector (Ganjam) Vijay Amruta Kulange said.
He added that he has been reviewing the progress of the project every week to ensure its timely completion. The government has decided to allow these schools to start functioning from October 2.
Shinde Dattatraya Bhausaheb, project director, District Rural Development Agency (DRDA), said though the government has set a target of covering 133 schools under the programme, the district administration has set its eyes on 274.
Under the programme, the district administration will improve the quality of the existing infrastructure. World-class interactive and smart classrooms, e-library-cum reading rooms and modern science laboratories will be set up in each of the selected schools. The students of Classes IX and X will be given priority as far as e-learning is concerned.
Apart from safe and pure drinking water and clean toilets in schools, the project also envisages better playgrounds for children complete with sports facilities. The walls of these schools will also be painted based on educative and interesting themes.
"The objective is to instil a sense of pride and aspiration in the students regarding their school campus and motivate them to attend it regularly," the district collector said.
The project was undertaken with the involvement of the local communities, including the gram panchayats, the school management development bodies and the alumni association. The community involvement will ensure the sustainability of the improved infrastructures in the schools, he said.
Kulange further said around Rs 50 to Rs 60 lakh would be spent on each of these schools for the infrastructure overhaul. While the major contribution will be from the 'Mo School' funds, the remaining amount will be used from the gram panchayat development (GPD) funds, the corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds, etc.
Sudhir Kumar Rout, an educationist, said, "The school transformation and impact of quality education on rural children was necessary in the wake of the state's recent decision to reserve 15% of the seats in engineering and medical colleges for students passing out of the government-run high schools."