Phoolka takes smart class concept to border areas

GS Paul

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, August 22

After introducing smart classrooms at government primary schools in his Dakha Assembly constituency, AAP MLA HS Phoolka is set to take the concept to educational institutions in border areas.

The MLA aims to equip schoolchildren with modern audio-visual module learning and raise the standard of education in government schools.

In the initial phase, 100 primary schools have been identified where the concept would be introduced. These include 10 schools in Tarn Taran and 30 each in Amritsar, Ferozepur and Gurdaspur districts.

The set-up includes a screen and a laptop with specially prepared applications. Teachers can play the apps and explain the concept to students. The cost of equipment is Rs 18,000.

Suneet Singh Tuli, a philanthropist and CEO of Datawind, the supplier of Akash tablets in India, has agreed to fund the project. NRIs Ravinder Singh Garewal (Los Angeles), Satnam Singh Sandhu (California) and Inder Dosanjh (San Francisco) have announced to pitch in too.

“I observed the graph of education in Punjab had been declining over the past decade. We want to provide free digital learning methodology to schools having students from the deprived sections of the society and living in remote areas. Private schools use this technology to impart education but they charge exorbitant fee. We will provide it for free. We have successfully implemented a similar project in my constituency. Poor students, who had never seen a projector and screen in their lives, now converse in English due to fast learning process,” Phoolka said.

Ibadat Singh, a representative of Datawind, said access to e-books pertaining to government-approved syllabus, education slides, animation, pictorial stories and learning letters was a click away. Teachers can upload syllabus on the ‘Padho Punjab’ app that comes inbuilt in the laptops provided to them.

‘Sidhu deserves bouquets, not brickbats’

Supporting Cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu’s Pakistan visit, MLA HS Phoolka said instead of criticism, he deserved accolades for bringing a hope of a corridor to Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib. If materialised, it would be the foundation of peace process between India and Pakistan. “Any other Sikh in Sidhu’s place would have embraced Pakistan Army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa, who assured to open access to the holiest place. If executed during the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, it would be a red-letter day for the Sikh community. His criticism is petty politics. At least, the SGPC should have honoured Sidhu rather than condemning him,” he said.