Chandigarh: Double shifts, more sections in high-enrolment govt schools

The UT education department has given in-principle approval for double shifts and additional sections in the government schools with high enrolment in the periphery of the city. The decision was taken at a meeting of the UT director school education (DSE). Over 40 school principals and 20 cluster heads attended the meeting.

The cluster heads, in consultation with UT district education officer (DEO) and deputy DSE, have been empowered to take decisions in this regard. Target areas, including Maloya, Khudda Jassu and Bapu Dham, have been identified.

Giving details, DSE Harsuhinderpal Singh Brar said that while some schools received many admissions, other barely got any. He added that the cluster heads have been tasked to examine if these schools need additional infrastructure and hold meetings with the schools to ensure that this will not lead to students from other schools migrating there.

During admissions, it was also seen that the information about vacant seats was not shared among schools in the same cluster. The admission process was smoother in the clusters where the cluster heads shared this information among schools. The DSE has asked that this be done in all clusters from now.

“While in-principle approval has been given to add extra sections or to convert to double shift where needed, sharing information within clusters has brought uniformity to admissions. We anticipate that the number of schools which will need extra infrastructure will be reduced, “ Brar added.

UT sees decline in out of school children

The UT education department conducts an annual survey to identify children who have either dropped out of school had never enrolled. As per the latest survey, conducted in December 2022, a total of 3,082 out of school children (OoSC) have been identified in the city, a slight decrease from 3,288 in 2021.

Speaking about this, Brar said that the central government has given directions that all OoSC have to be brought back to school within eight months.

The children will be enrolled in classes as per their age. Their competence will be assessed for competence and educated in 129 special training centers run by the department to bridge the learning gap. A grant for ₹186.71 lakh was also approved for this in a project approval board meeting held in 2022.