E-Paper
Soon, child-friendly furniture in over 26,000 govt schools in UP
This covers 58% of such schools -- the state has 45,625 government-run upper primary schools, which are for Class 6-8 students, in 75 districts
The Uttar Pradesh government has cleared procurement of child-friendly furniture for 26,599 of its upper primary schools spread across 70 districts of the state. This covers 58% of such schools -- the state has 45,625 government-run upper primary schools, which are for Class 6-8 students, in 75 districts.
The government has also sanctioned ₹488 crore for the same, of which ₹327 crore has been released, said state education department officials. The procurement has been duly approved by the project approval board of the Union education ministry too, they said.
“The government believes that the furniture would help improve classroom pedagogical practices, instil self-confidence among students and also generate pride in them for their institution. The government also hopes that the move would spur admissions in government schools,” said a senior official of the basic education department.
Also Read | Uttarakhand to review decision to stop Kanwar Yatra amid Covid-19
Divisional assistant director (basic education), Prayagraj, Ramesh Kumar Tiwari said the furniture would be procured from the government e-Marketplace (GeM) portal overseen by a committee headed by respective district magistrates.
“The furniture would be child-friendly and provide adequate space between the desk and the chair, keeping in mind the different age groups of the students,” he explained.
They said the stress is on safe, comfortable and quality furniture made with hollow circular pipes instead of the old-style angle iron frames that could cause injury to students. The furniture would also have adequate space for students to keep their school bags, books and notebooks besides water bottles, said a government directive.
As many as 687,036 pieces of furniture are being procured for 26,599 upper primary schools as part of this exercise. “In Prayagraj, 16,791 pieces of furniture for 599 upper primary schools would be procured. Earlier in 2017-18 also, furniture was procured for 175 of these schools,” said Prayagraj basic shiksha adhikari Sanjay Kumar Kushwaha.
