Centre starting PM SHRI on lines of AP’s Nadu-Nedu: Former Education Minister
VIJAYAWADA: Former education minister, the Penamaluru MLA Kolusu Parthasarathy, has said AP became a role model for the world to follow in the education sector.
Inspired by the Jagan government’s Nadu-Nedu initiative, the central government would start 14,500 schools across the country with all facilities, styled as PM SHRI (PM Schools for Rising India), he said while addressing the media here on Tuesday.
Parthasarathy said delegates from the Centre praised the state educational policies and schemes.
He said, “Our government’s greatest investment is in the field of education. CM Jagan firmly believes in the development of a strong and capable human capital for AP. We are revolutionizing the state’s education system with focus on free & quality education for all.”
“Earlier, everyone wanted private sector education that was only for the privileged classes. The private education player’s (BYJUS-type) content was exclusively reserved for the upper classes. Today, given Andhra Pradesh’s inclusive model of development, we can see how a government school student too is holding a tablet filled with digital education content and is getting the same exposure like any other child in urban areas,” he said.
The former minister said the reforms and schemes -- be it Videshi Vidya Deevana or Nadu-Nedu or Amma Vodi -- were all the first-of-their-kind in the history of Andhra Pradesh.
Parthasarathy said, “Supporting Andhra’s Learning Transformation (SALT), a new programme supported by World Bank is being implemented with a view to strengthening the foundation schools and providing training and skill development to teachers.”
“During the TD's tenure, Andhra Pradesh was one of the worst-performing states, ranked at 24 in the Education Ministry's Performance Grading Index. Today, under the leadership of CM Jagan, Andhra Pradesh has jumped to rank 7. As per the Annual Status of Education Report (Rural) 2021, enrolment in government schools has increased from 62 per cent in 2018 to 71 per cent in 2021.”
