Sites unsuitable, Himachal govt considers upgrade option for Rajiv schools

Tribune News Service

Subhash Rajta

Shimla, November 15

The government will consider upgrading existing schools into Rajiv Gandhi Model Day Boarding Schools in those Assembly constituencies where the parameters regarding land, location and enrolment are not met. The government is thinking on these lines after a few sites selected for these schools have been found unsuitable.

“The committee, headed by Special Secretary, Education, surveyed 18 sites in different Assembly constituencies. It found out that a few sites were too close to the khud, and at some places the enrolment in the adjoining schools was too low. Besides, a few sites will need heavy investment to make it suitable for constriction,” said Education Minister Rohit Thakur.

CM’s flagship project

• Constructing Rajiv Gandhi Model Day Boarding Schools is the flagship project of the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu government in education sector
• The government plans to build one such school in all 68 Assembly constituencies
• These schools will be built on over 100 kanals and equipped with modern facilities for excellence in academics and sports

In view of the issues flagged by the committee, the government is looking at the option of upgrading the existing schools into Rajiv Gandhi Day Boarding Schools by supplementing its infrastructure and the staff. “There’s no point in raising big infrastructure where we might struggle to find good enrolment or the infrastructure is vulnerable to natural calamities like floods and landslides. We will not create infrastructure at such sites and will instead go for upgrading the existing schools with good enrolment and infrastructure,” said Thakur.

Constructing Rajiv Gandhi Model Day Boarding Schools is the flagship project of the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu government in the education sector. The government plans to build one such school in all 68 Assembly constituencies of the state. These schools will be built on over 100 kanals of land and will be equipped with modern facilities for excellence in academics and sports.

Thakur further said the government would not make the mistake the BJP government made in constructing Atal Vidyalayas. “In Dharampur, where the BJP government raised infrastructure for Atal Vidyalaya, there are just 180 children in the adjoining area. It has turned out to be a while elephant. We do not want to make the same mistake,” said Thakur. For Rajiv Gandhi Model Day Boarding Schools, the minimum enrolment in hilly areas has been fixed at 500, and 800-1,000 in plains.

Thakur said the work on these schools will start shortly. “The disaster during monsoon has pushed us back a little, but we will start the work shortly,” said Thakur.

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