Government has taken up the challenge of education of tribal population in mission mode: Shri Arjun Munda

Moral values and character-building should be the focus of education: Tribal Affairs Minister

The Union Minister of Tribal Affairs, Shri Arjun Munda, interacted with the students of seven Eklavya Model Residential Schools situated in the various districts of Jharkhand via video conferencing mode on 22^nd February, 2022.

During the lively interaction, the Minister stated that the Government has taken up the challenge of education of the tribal population in mission mode and we are working to catapult them to international levels. To this effect, the government has sanctioned new 452 Eklavya Model Residential Schools to fill the gap in the education of tribal children and a large number of these schools are proposed to be opened in remote areas and at the block level. These schools will provide quality education for all-round development of the tribal students, the Minister added. He further stated that the Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of 50 EMRSs on Janjatiya Gaurav Divas i.e 15^th November, 2021, out of which 20 are located in Jharkhand. Giving more details, Sh Arjun Munda said that during last few years’ efforts have been made to step up the quality of education in these schools as a result of which we now see many toppers and winners emerging from EMRSs in different fields like academics, sports, cultural activities among others. The students are also being involved in social and nation building activities like Poshan Abhiyaan, Swachchta Mission among others. Moral values and character-building should be the focus of education , the Minister said.  The Minister said that a large number of scholarships are available to tribal children for taking up higher studies like post-matric scholarship, scholarship for higher education, national fellowship, scholarship for overseas education, and the endeavor is to give out as many scholarships to the ST students as possible.

Giving the example of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, he said that it is the first time that the Prime Minister of the country, in such a busy schedule, has been interacting with the students through a unique programme ParikshaPeCharcha(PPC). The Prime Minister has been guiding students before their exams to remain stress-free and take part in the exams with confidence. The Minister exhorted the students of EMRSs should also come forward and involve as well as deliberate with the Prime Minister in the program ParikshaPeCharcha 2022 for students before the exams.

Encouraging the indomitable spirit of the persevering students, Shri Arjun Munda also expressed his delight while addressing the students.

Secretary, Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Shri Anil Kumar Jha, who was also present on the occasion apprised the students of the various coveted Scholarships of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs that have been implemented for the benefit of the Scheduled Tribe students who aspire to study further. He also applauded the students for their achievements in various fields.

The event commenced with the EMRS Kujra (Lohardaga Dist.) students’ melodious rendition of the Saraswati Vandana. Thereafter, the head of each of the seven schools presented a synopsis of the performance of their school and the recent laurels achieved.

The session also included a short ‘Question Hour’ wherein the students asked Shri Arjun Munda a few interesting questions.

Shri Asit Gopal, Commissioner/ Director, NSTFDC and Shri Naman Priya Lakra, Commissioner, Tribal Welfare Department, Jharkhand, were also present, on the occasion.

Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) are a Government of India scheme to establish model residential schools for Tribal students (Scheduled Tribes) across the country. It is a flagship intervention of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs to ensure first-class education and all-around development of tribal students in remote tribal regions. The Union Budget for 2018-19 introduced that each block with more than 50% ST population and at least 20,000 tribal people shall have the provisions of Eklavya Model Residential Schools.

Eklavya Model Residential Schools are being developed to impart to tribal students, with an emphasis on academic training. The schools cater to Tribal students from classes VI to XII, having an average strength of 480 students. At present, there are 367 functional EMRSsin the country. Set up at par with NavodayaVidyalayas, they also provide training in sports and ability development. Also, EMRSs are prepared with facilities catering to the students’ on-campus needs for holistic improvement and offer free education inclusive of boarding and lodging free of cost.