Srinagar, Jan 11: The School Education Department (SED) is likely to witness major reforms in the upcoming financial year as the Government of India (GoI) is mulling major initiatives under the centrally sponsored scheme- Samagra Shiksha.
An official said the Project Approval Board (PAB) meeting, to be convened by the Secretary Department of School Education and Literacy (DSEL), is scheduled for the last week of March this year.
“A few days ago, DSEL convened a general meeting with all the States and UTS, following which dates for holding PAB were fixed as well,” the official told Greater Kashmir.
The official said that with the launch of Samagra Shiksha 2.0 (revised) this year will be on secondary and senior secondary schools in terms of infrastructure upgradation and providing academic support to the schools.
“After the upcoming PAB meeting in March, the J&K SED will get financial support for hiring temporary lecturers and teachers for higher secondary schools and secondary schools to overcome the dearth of teaching staff,” the official said.
He said the move will do away with the ongoing practice of shifting subject-specific teachers from elementary level schools to high and higher secondary schools to overcome the dearth of lecturers.
“This will be the biggest reform to provide academic support to the schools,” the official said.
He said under the scheme, the schools will get a sweeper for cleaning toilet blocks as well.
“The primary level schools will be provided Shishu Vatika (Attendants) for kindergarten students for their watch and ward,” the official told Greater Kashmir. He said the initiative aligns with NEP-2020 and will provide structured pre-school education for children aged 5-6 years.
The official said the department is preparing proposals to be projected before the DSEL and seek the approval for the upcoming financial year.
