State Edu Dept releases Rs 28cr for additional classrooms

Tribune News Service

Faridkot, January 22

The Department of School Education released Rs28.48 crore, 75 per cent of the total estimated cost of Rs38.64 crore, for the construction of 520 additional classrooms in government schools of the state, on Wednesday. The remaining amount will be released after submission of utility certificates by schools, before February 29.

Besides funds for construction of additional classrooms, the department also released Rs2.33 crore for 777 spillover ramps and handrails and Rs3.49 crore for fresh ramps and handrails in the schools. These funds have been released under the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyaan (SSA) of the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India. The SSA programme is aimed at providing quality education to students of pre-nursery to Class XII. It subsumes the three erstwhile schemes, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) and the Teacher Education (TE).

The maximum number of new classrooms (64) is to be constructed in Fazilka, followed by 63 in Ludhiana, 41 in Amritsar, 35 each in SAS Nagar and Muktsar and 31 in Jalandhar district. Faridkot, Bathinda, Barnala, Mansa, Moga and Ferozepur districts will construct 7, 26, 9, 25, 17 and 19 new rooms, respectively, in government schools. In Faridkot district, two rooms will be constructed each at government schools at Sibbian and Sandhwan village and one room each at senior secondary schools in Arayian Wala Kalan, Ghugiana and Indira Colony.