Develop a comprehensive five-year plan to reduce school distances: J-K LG

An official spokesman for Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha directed officials to develop a comprehensive five-year plan for reducing the distance between schools for children within the union territory on Wednesday. According to an official spokesman, the lieutenant governor provided these directions at a high-level meeting to review the implementation of the PM SHRI Schools (PM Schools for Rising India) scheme in Jammu and Kashmir.

“Prepare a comprehensive five-year plan to reduce the distance of schools for children. The new schools should be sanctioned with a focus that children should not have to travel long distances,” Sinha said.

In 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the PM SHRI scheme to upgrade and develop 14,500 schools across the country on Teachers’ Day.

According to the spokesman, 233 schools from Jammu and Kashmir have been approved for PM SHRI in phase-I, while 265 schools have been recommended to the ministry in phase-II.

In total, 20 master trainers have been trained at New Delhi, one for each district.

“PM SHRI will provide mentorship to other schools in their respective areas,” the lieutenant governor stated.

“Focus will be on learning outcomes of every child in every grade while promoting critical thinking, communication, collaboration and creativity in all schools,” he added.

As a result, the lieutenant governor instructed the school education department to include the life histories and contributions of inspirational icons such as General Zorawar Singh, Brig Rajinder Singh, Maqbool Sherwani and other prominent individuals in the curriculum of the schools.

As part of Sinha’s directives, the department will also ensure that vocational training and skill development programmes are available in the schools as well as the inclusion of Indian philosophy in all of the union territory’s universities.