In a detailed review, Chief Secretary SP Goyal laid out clear mandates: toilets must be spotless, equipped with running water, power backups if necessary, and sturdy locks by March 8. The emphasis is on dedicated girls’ facilities to foster a secure learning space.

This timely intervention is expected to transform school attendance for female students, ease menstrual hygiene challenges, and curb dropouts. It’s a powerful statement of respect and empowerment ahead of the global celebration of women.

Accountability is key, with mandatory photo uploads on the Prerna portal for every school’s toilets. District authorities are on the ground, verifying conditions and expediting repairs or installations. Budgets are allocated, resources mobilized—no excuses will be tolerated past the deadline, with accountability measures for laggards.

Beyond infrastructure, this drive underscores UP’s broader vision for gender-sensitive education, ensuring every girl can pursue studies without basic indignities.

Sood’s speech cut through the rhetoric of political promises, stating real transformation happens in labs and classrooms, not ad campaigns. He praised Gupta’s firm resolve in prioritizing cement and computers over advertisements, acknowledging contributions from the education team, Ladli Foundation, and AIF.

Highlighting the digital divide, Sood shared anecdotes from school visits where few students owned computers, underscoring the need for school-based tech access. He contrasted past efforts like Operation Blackboard with current ambitions: smart boards in every room.

Achievements include distributing over 7,000 computers swiftly, tendering 7,000 smart boards for 21,000 classrooms with guaranteed maintenance, and planning 7,000 more computers for 175 labs. Past governments’ inadequate labs—one CPU for multiple screens—are history; now, each desk has dedicated systems.

Ladli Foundation has donated 2,000 computers for 100 labs, committing to 1,500 more for 75 others. With over 1,000 government schools, full ICT coverage is targeted in three years. Digital libraries numbering over 100 are also in the works.

Delhi’s education story will shine at the AI Summit via a prominent stall. The new ‘Give Back’ initiative calls on the community for support, ensuring government efforts complement societal involvement to equalize education standards.

Gratitude was extended to all partners, with Sood affirming that Delhi’s educational overhaul is in motion and gaining speed.

Recalling his childhood in a tiny school by the Narmada in Jait, Chouhan noted how perseverance propelled him forward despite limited resources. The stark disparity hit him hard: private schools are unaffordable for the poor, leaving their bright children at a disadvantage. The pivotal moment came during his coronavirus battle in the hospital, where he conceptualized schools rivaling the best private ones.

From that hospital bed, he gathered inputs from specialists and finalized the blueprint for CM Rise Schools packed with cutting-edge features. The new facility boasts specialized laboratories, a comprehensive library, administrative suites, a high-tech kitchen, eco-friendly rainwater systems, landscaped gardens, renewable solar energy, interactive smart classes, athletic tracks, playgrounds, durable infrastructure, and premium furnishings—making it superior to most private counterparts.

Chouhan reaffirmed his pledge: talent must not wither due to poverty. He challenged the school team to achieve perfect academic outcomes in the new setup. Broadening his welfare agenda, the minister promised motorized bikes for the disabled, assistance for roadside vendors via government schemes, and artisan empowerment under PM Vishwakarma.

As these schools proliferate across Madhya Pradesh, they symbolize inclusive growth, empowering the underprivileged to compete on equal footing. Chouhan’s initiative not only honors his roots but sets a benchmark for public education nationwide.

Sir JC Bose School of Excellence Girls, Giridih, will be among the first to issue these digital reports on December 5th. Principal Munna Prasad Kushwaha explained that the digital report card meticulously details student performance in the Summative Assessment One (SA-1). It categorizes achievements into scholastic and co-scholastic areas. The final grade is a weighted combination, with 40% from term-end monthly exams and 60% from SA-1. An ‘Open House’ event on December 5th will showcase these digital reports via projector, offering parents and students a clear view of academic progress.

The Chief Minister emphasized that educating girls is akin to educating the entire society. He stated the state government’s commitment to the higher education of girls. This scholarship aims to assist economically disadvantaged girls in completing their college or diploma studies.

The scheme is being implemented through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Azim Premji Foundation. The Chief Minister thanked the Foundation and said that this initiative would fuel the dreams of thousands of girls. He noted Chhattisgarh’s progress in all sectors in recent years, highlighting the crucial role of girls. He stressed the importance of ensuring that no girl is forced to discontinue her education due to financial constraints.

Ten years ago, on August 18, 2015, Justice Sudhir Agarwal of the Allahabad High Court ruled that all government employees, MLAs, MPs, ministers, etc., in the state should send their children to government schools. He had urged that this be made mandatory. However, the Chief Minister of the state at the time brushed aside this advice. Justice Agarwal’s point was that if government employees, MLAs, and judges sent their children to government schools, the government schools would definitely be transformed. If his advice had been heeded, the current deplorable condition of government schools would not have occurred. Now, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh is planning to close down all the primary schools in the state. Obviously, the monopoly of private schools is behind this.

If there are no government schools, parents will enroll their children in private schools. It is not that the level of education in private schools is very good. However, they have better management and teachers who keep children disciplined. They will give so much homework that the child will be forced to study.

The situation in healthcare services is the same. There are government hospitals, primary health centers, and community service centers in every district. But doctors are not available in them, and if they are, medicines are not available. Many tests have to be done outside. In such a situation, the family members will take the patient to private hospitals, where so many unnecessary tests will be done on the patient that their pockets will be emptied. The government says that we have made Ayushman health cards for some poor people. But, till date, the government has never checked that most private hospitals do not accept Ayushman cards. There is no guarantee that private hospitals will be able to provide good treatment either. In a way, the patient will be looted there too and will return empty-handed. There is no human dignity in the behavior of the management in private hospitals.

In a public welfare government, where is the welfare of the people? Governments around the world that prioritize public welfare provide free treatment to patients. It is a different matter that heavy taxes are deducted from their salaries. But, if treatment and education are free, any citizen does not have any problem in paying up to 51 percent tax. Even if we don’t look at the models of Western countries, our neighboring country Bhutan provides free medical treatment to its citizens. Besides, treatment is free in Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Norway, Spain, Taiwan, and Cuba. In Brazil, even foreign citizens can get free treatment in government hospitals. Health service is not free in the USA. Treatment there is very expensive but excellent. Whatever treatment is done there, it will be reliable. Also, the USA is ranked first in medical education.

On the other hand, there are many doctors in India, but it is a failure in terms of treatment. Either the treatment is expensive, and there is no guarantee whether the doctor is doing the right treatment or not. Earlier, people used to trust government hospitals because the doctors used to run the hospital, not the management, who were taught the lesson of human dignity. In such a situation, the statement of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat is welcome that today the services of education and health are in a bad state. These services are no longer being run as a service but as a business. According to him, there are many educational centers and hospitals in our country. But all these are beyond the reach of the common people. His concern is valid, but who will work to bring these services on track? Because the government in the country is of the BJP.

Taking this statement as a basis, the Congress has now become aggressive against the BJP. But this is not a matter of mutual blame. Rather, every political party has been taking the initiative in the matter of commercialization of these services. Ashok Gehlot, who was the Chief Minister of Rajasthan, did implement the Chiranjeevi Health Scheme and made free treatment up to 25 lakh rupees for every person in the state. EWS families did not have to pay any premium in this. Those who are not pensioners and are not eligible for any government health service, after paying 850 rupees per annum, got the benefit of this scheme, that too for the whole family. But the scheme went into the waste basket after the government left. No such scheme has come up in any other state.

Although education and health are state subjects. But, the central government itself should take the initiative and implement such schemes, which can benefit the people of the entire country. Even if additional taxes are taken for it. This will equalize the level of education across the country. Private schools and hospitals should continue to function because 141 crore people cannot be provided free education nor can so many hospitals be built. But the government can do two things. First, to monitor these services in the private sector and restore government services. Second, a quick investigation into any complaint. Recently, on Monday night, a judge of the District Court of Ghaziabad passed away. Two days ago, he had returned after undergoing a hernia operation from a private hospital.

Obviously, the judge may have had some other illness as well, but the private hospital, in a hurry to complete its package, did not get him tested, and the judge did not recover after a normal operation, and he lost his life. Whereas that hospital is considered one of the big private hospitals in Ghaziabad. After Covid, hospitals showed negligence in the Covid rules, and the result is in front of us. This kind of negligence shows that strict monitoring of private hospitals is necessary. The funny thing is that this is the same private hospital where the Chief Minister himself comes. Until private hospitals and schools are strictly monitored, they will only remain businesses. In the USA, although hospitals are expensive, their license will be revoked for negligence.

Where is the dream of Ram Rajya?

The commercialization of education and health has become such in our country that the concern of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat is valid. The RSS had also completed the work of establishing the idol of Ramlala in Ayodhya, for which it had launched a nationwide movement. The government has also been of the BJP for the last 11 years, but the basic concept of Ram Rajya has not been realized. Mahatma Gandhi also envisioned Ram Rajya. At its root was the easy availability of fundamental rights for the people. Education and health are the most important among these. Tulsi Das has written about Ram Rajya – Ram Raj Baithe Tirloka, Harshita Bhaye Gaye Sab Soka! That is, Ram Rajya is where there is no sorrow and suffering. The root cause of sorrow is the lack of access to education and health facilities.