- The union cabinet has approved the continuation of the Samagra Shiksha scheme for school education till March 31, 2026.The revised scheme with a period of five years from 2021-2022to 2025-26 with a total financial outlay of Rs 2,94,283.04 crore. The financial outlay includes a central share of Rs. 1,85,398.32 crore.
- “It aims to ensure that all children have access to quality education with an equitable and inclusive classroom environment which should take care of their diverse background, multilingual needs, different academic abilities and make them active participants in the learning process,” said the official statement.
What is the Samagra Shiksha scheme?
- The Samagra Shiksha scheme is an integrated scheme for school education from pre-school to Class 12. The scheme treats school education as a continuum and is in accordance with the Sustainable Development Goal for Education (SDG-4).
- It provides support for the implementation of the RTE Act and has also aligned with the recommendations of NEP 2020 to ensure that all children have access to quality education with an equitable and inclusive classroom environment which should take care of their diverse background, multilingual needs, different academic abilities and make them active participants in the learning process.
- The scheme covers 11.6 lakh schools, over 15.6 crore students and 57 lakh teachers of government and aided schools (from pre-primary to senior secondary level). In order to ensure effective implementation of the scheme and its reach to last mile, measurable Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) have been developed, for every component of Samagra Shiksha, the statement added.
- The new interventions, based on the recommendations of the NEP 2020, have been incorporated in the revamped Samagra Shiksha scheme. These include preparing master trainers for training of Anganwadi workers and in-service teacher training for ECCE teachers and provision of upto ₹500 per child for learning materials, indigenous toys and games, play-based activities per annum for pre-primary sections in government schools and support for pre-primary sections in government primary schools.
- The child tracking provision has been included for ensuring the safety of students of government and government aided schools and greater emphasis will be given on direct benefit transfers so that the various benefits reach the students directly in the shortest time.
- A sum of ₹6,000 per annum will be extended to secondary level school students for availing transport facility. For disabled children and children belonging to SC/ST community in the age bracket of 16-19 years, ₹2,000 will be provided per child to complete their secondary/senior secondary levels through NIOS/SOS.
