Jammu, Aug 10 (KNO): As many as 711 government schools in the Jammu Lok Sabha constituency have been approved for Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Labs, while 530 schools have been approved for Smart Classrooms, the Union Government has informed the Lok Sabha.
Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Jayant Chaudhary, stated this in a written reply to the Lok Sabha regarding promotion of digital education in Jammu.
As per the reply, accessed by the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), the government is promoting digital education in school education through various initiatives under Samagra Shiksha, in alignment with the objectives of the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020.
Under the scheme, financial assistance is provided to States and Union Territories, including Jammu and Kashmir, based on their Annual Work Plan and Budget (AWP&B), as approved by the Project Approval Board (PAB) in consultation with the respective State/UT.
The assistance supports strengthening of ICT infrastructure, including ICT Labs and Smart Classrooms, in Government and Government-aided schools having Classes VI to XII, including schools located in rural, remote and hilly areas.
As reported by the UT of Jammu & Kashmir, 711 government schools at the Elementary, Secondary and Senior Secondary levels in the Jammu Lok Sabha constituency have been approved for ICT Labs, while 530 schools have been approved for Smart Classrooms, the Ministry said.
To enhance digital connectivity and access to digital resources in remote and hilly areas, the Government has announced broadband connectivity to all Government Secondary Schools in rural areas under the BharatNet project in the Union Budget 2025.
The Ministry also implements digital education initiatives such as DIKSHA and PM eVidya to provide equitable access to quality digital learning resources.
DIKSHA, the national digital platform for school education, provides curriculum-aligned e-content, including QR-coded Energised Textbooks, teacher resources and other learning materials. The platform also supports online and offline access, allowing learners to download content and continue learning without internet connectivity.
PM eVidya, launched on May 17, 2020, integrates digital, online and on-air education initiatives to enable multimode access to education across the country.
The Ministry said ePathshala, developed by NCERT, provides free access to NCERT textbooks from Classes I to XII, audio-visual resources and teacher training modules through its website and mobile application.
The government’s long-term strategy is to modernize the school education system in line with NEP 2020, with saturation of ICT labs, smart classrooms and science labs in Government Secondary Schools being undertaken under Samagra Shiksha—(KNO)