Bengal CM announces Rs 296 crore fund for schools
Kolkata, July 29
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Wednesday announced a corpus of Rs 296 crore for 80,375 state-run and state-aided schools in West Bengal under the "composite school grant fund" to develop and improve the state-run school education system.
Announcing this at a press conference at the state secretariat Nabanna, the Chief Minister said that during the previous Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government, the academic standards in the school education system had deteriorated drastically because of the regime's reluctance to allot adequate funds for state-run and state-aided schools.
"The new state government is operating with two separate departments, one for school education and the other for higher education, so that we can concentrate separately on these sectors. Our goal is to improve the quality of the education system by agreeing with the Union Government," the Chief Minister said.
He stressed improving education infrastructure in the state to make students school-oriented.
"We aim to elevate the standards of the state-run education system on par with the private sector," he added.
He also said he was hopeful that modern education would be combined with Indian culture in accordance with the National Education Policy.
"Parents will be included in the school management committee. We have plans to thoroughly modernise state-run and state-aided schools. Audio-visual education on the West Bengal education portal and training of teachers on the Diksha platform are all part of those efforts," the Chief Minister said.
According to him, three lakh teachers have already registered on the Diksha portal.
He further said that the new Union Education Minister, Pralhad Joshi, would visit West Bengal shortly.
"There will be multiple discussions to revive the education system in the state. The government will move forward on the path of development step by step. The state government has already provided land for the establishment of Kendriya Vidyalayas in every district," the Chief Minister added.
— IANS
Reader Comments
As a teacher in a government school, I can tell you the previous government neglected us badly. No funds for basic things like benches, fans, or even proper drinking water. This announcement gives me some hope, but talk is cheap. We need regular audits to ensure the money isn't siphoned off. Also, including parents in school management is a great idea!
Good move overall. But let's be honest—blaming the previous government for everything is getting old. We need solutions, not just rhetoric. The digital push with Diksha and audio-visual education is welcome, but many rural schools don't even have reliable electricity. Modernization must go hand-in-hand with basic infrastructure. Let's hope the new minister's visit brings tangible results.
I'm a parent and I'm cautiously optimistic. The idea of parent involvement in school committees is excellent—we need more accountability. But ₹296 crore for 80,000 schools works out to about ₹37,000 per school. That's a drop in the bucket for significant improvements. Hope this is just the first installment and more funds are coming. Education is the foundation, so invest properly.
Interesting to see West Bengal focusing on education. The NEP alignment is smart—it can bring national standards and maybe even central funding. But I wonder about the political undertones here. The CM's strong words against the previous government might create unnecessary friction when collaboration is needed. Regardless, kids in Bengal deserve better schools, and this is a start.
The emphasis on combining modern education with Indian culture is what we need! For too long, our education system has been disconnected from our
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.