CM opens state’s 1st smart school

Naina Mishra

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, August 14

Chief Minister Amarinder Singh inaugurated the Smart School project and 10KW Solar Net Metering project at Government Smart School, PAU, in Ludhiana on Tuesday.

The school has become the first smart school in Punjab. As many as 261 schools will be converted into smart schools. Of these, 27 schools are in Ludhiana.

Over Rs 50-lakh grant has been sanctioned by the department for the completion of work on smart classes, landscaping, colour coding, repair and maintenance, construction of toilets and principal’s room.

There are eight rooms that have been equipped with laptops, multimedia projectors and high-speed Internet for Classes VI to X.

The classes commenced from 1 pm and continued till 6 pm owing to the CM Amarinder Singh’s visit. E-content designed under the state project ‘Padho Punjab, Padhao Punjab’ was used for the teaching in these smart classes.

The replica of various activities under the Padho Punjab Padhao Punjab project was presented, wherein students from different government schools were called upon to present the models. The presentation included the replica of maths fair, science fair, Khed Mahal and pre-primary class material.

Students were extremely happy with the remodelled smart school. “Earlier, there was no paint in the classrooms and no fans. Now, everything is new and we are loving the school,” said Manjot, a student.

The Khedo Punjab project was also depicted by students through a practice session on karate, hockey, volleyball and basketball. Education Secretary Krishan Kumar and Education Minister OP Soni reviewed various models prepared under the project.

Seek community support for revamping schools: Edu Secy

Education Secretary Krishan Kumar encouraged community support and urged teachers to volunteer. “There are many schools who have transformed their shape without taking any penny from the government. Teachers should seek help from the community as they play a major role in shaping the education system. Even if we spend crores of money, it cannot be guaranteed that everything remains in order. For that, everyone should take responsibility,” he said. adding that in a few years down the line, government schools will have more enrolment than private schools. Private schools lack quality and are only successful with the role of parents.

‘Action against leaders for compromising with studies’

Education Minister OP Soni said: “The union leaders have their own mindset and it does not align with us. Strict action will be taken against those who will be involved in wasting students’ time by giving dharnas in school time. We have already suspended seven union leaders for compromising with education. And those who again led sit-ins were sent 300 km away from schools.”

CM interacts with students

Chief Minister Amarinder Singh visited the smart classrooms and posed questions to the students. He asked a Class VI student about the use of a rough notebook in class. “We use the rough book to avoid mistakes in the fair copy,” replied the student.