Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 24 Jul: District Magistrate Savin Bansal has reaffirmed his commitment to modernising government schools across the district under ‘Project Utkarsh’. The project focusses on upgrading facilities by providing furniture, improving sports infrastructure, and introducing digital classrooms.
It may be reminded here that organisations such as ONGC and HUDCO have partnered in this endeavour, with ONGC supplying furniture and HUDCO equipping schools with LED screens and bulbs.
The district administration has shared that furniture has already been installed in government schools across Chakrata and Kalsi blocks, while the furniture is being supplied in Vikas Nagar, Sahaspur, Raipur, and Doiwala with continued support from ONGC. Project Utkarsh is aimed at levelling the playing field for students in government schools, ensuring they are not left behind in comparison to their private school peers. Under the guidance of the Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, Bansal has mobilised an amount of Rs 6 crores from the Mineral Trust, District Plan, and CSR funds, towards modernising academic facilities in the region.
In a significant move, purchase orders for 884 large LED televisions were issued today on the GeM portal for installation in the district’s 168 government secondary schools, with bidding already complete. The district administration has claimed that these classrooms have already been equipped with whiteboards, lighting, outdoor sports amenities, kitchens, electricity connections, and libraries, and now digital content will be made accessible to students through LED screens.
It may be recalled that Project Utkarsh is not limited to Dehradun alone; Bansal had previously implemented similar upgrades in government schools during his tenure in Nainital and Almora. In addition to existing improvements, an amount of Rs 3.67 crores from the Mineral Trust has been allocated to the education department to install digital LED screens in schools, with procurement underway via the GeM portal. The initiative will see digital education extended to all 168 government secondary schools in the district.
To further enhance school infrastructure and ensure basic learning conditions, a flexible fund of Rs 1 crore has also been directly allocated to headmasters, enabling them to provide whiteboards, LED lights, furniture, and sports facilities. Vocational training is also being promoted, along with the introduction of biographies, newspapers, dictionaries, and magazines to help students gain awareness of national and global affairs. To support this holistic approach, the education officers have been instructed to ensure availability of electricity, clean water, toilets, and to maintain hygiene through proper cleaning and repair of water tanks, along with the provision of nutritious meals.
