The Belgaum Zilla Panchayat plans to focus on developing the majority of rural schools, with improvements to infrastructure and filling of vacancies where possible.
In the first phase, selected schools in the Belgaum and Chikkodi educational districts will be prioritized for development. This initiative will include schools that provide education from classes 1 to 12.
A total of 14 schools in the Belgaum educational district and 16 in the Chikkodi district will be developed initially, with other schools to be addressed in later phases.
These schools will receive improvements through upgraded facilities and the addition of teaching and non-teaching staff. The goal is to offer high-quality education to local children and reduce the need for families to relocate in search of better educational opportunities.
A Total Station Survey will be conducted at the sites of 30 schools. Education Department officers will gather comprehensive data, including the area of the site, geographical features, contour maps, details of existing buildings, stability certificates, location maps, soil test reports, and other relevant information.
The refurbishment of the schools and the assignment of staff will begin before the next academic year. These schools will be under close scrutiny, with senior officials conducting regular inspections to identify infrastructure issues and assess the quality and effectiveness of the teaching-learning process.
“At a recent meeting, I instructed the officers to work towards making rural schools as appealing as the elite private schools in the cities,” said Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer Rahul Shinde.
He stated that by enhancing infrastructure in rural schools, the government aims to provide quality education from classes 1 to 12 in these areas, reducing the need for students to move to cities for better education.
The Department of Education is also addressing the issue of repairing schools damaged by heavy rain and floods. “We are preparing a report for the State government on the damaged schools and hope to secure additional funds and guidance for their repair,” Mr. Shinde said.
According to him, the first noticeable improvement will be reflected in the performance of these schools in the 10th and 12th-grade exams, compared to the district average.
Based on the results from the 2023-24 academic year, he recommended taking proactive measures to enhance the outcomes of the SSLC and PU annual exams for the 2024-25 academic year.
To address this, various committees have been established to delegate tasks. Senior officials, including deputy directors of school and pre-university education, block education officers, planning coordinators, and cluster resource centre supervisors, have been assigned specific responsibilities, he said.
