Kurukshetra project ‘Neev’ aims at transforming 35 primary schools

Nitish Sharma

Kurukshetra, February 15

To improve the academic atmosphere and infrastructure in government schools, the Kurukshetra district administration is transforming 35 government primary schools in the district under project “Neev”.

Under the project, 35 government primary schools performing badly in academics, having poor infrastructure and with falling student strength were selected across seven blocks (Babain, Ismailabad, Ladwa, Pehowa, Pipli, Shahabad and Thanesar) of the district.

Government primary schools in Ram Shran Majra, Berthala, Bhagwanpur, Hinga Kheri, Chammu Kalan, Badarpur, Kalsa, Pipli, Umri, Yara, Mirzapur and Narkatari were among the 35 schools identified through the Education Department officials.

As per information, to improve infrastructure under the MGNREGA scheme, construction of boundary walls, sanitation, clearance and land development related works are being done at a cost of Rs 176 lakh, while under the D-plan, a budget of Rs 52 lakh is being utilised for the repair of classrooms in 20 schools.

The district administration has also sent two projects to the Power Grid Corporation of India for the installation of 105 smart boards and solar panels in 35 schools, under the CSR activities.

A senior district official said the prime objective of the project was to improve the infrastructure and attract the students towards government schools. More schools are expected to be covered under the project in the next financial year.

City Magistrate, Kurukshetra, Harpreet Kaur said, “The schools where the minimum student enrollment was 50 and at least two teachers were available were selected under the project last year. Village sarpanches have also played an important role, especially the sarpanch of Berthala village, in improving the overall infrastructure of the schools. Initially, the plan was to improve the academic atmosphere and also focus on improving infrastructure, but later it was decided to prepare the Class V students for the Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (JNV) selection test.”

“The students were motivated, online classes were arranged, books and stationery were distributed. Online teaching sessions for 90 days were organised through the JNV Nivarasi and weekly practice tests were conducted and about 350 students appeared in the test conducted in January” she added.

The official said, “For students up to Class III, foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN) programmes are being run to improve the foundational literacy (Hindi and English) and mathematics so that all students could become FLN competent. While the school teachers are actively participating throughout the project, the Chief Minister Good Governance Associate Nandan Londhe and the education department officials have been coordinating and monitoring to ensure the smooth implementation of the project.”