PM Shri schools in Varanasi to upgrade education infrastructure
According to officials, teachers in PM SHRI schools are holding regular meetings with principals of nearby government schools to share best pedagogy practices aligned with NEP 2020 for improved attendance and enrolments of students.
Shashi Prabha Rai, principal of a PM SHRI school from Nawapur said, 'The enrolment of students in my school has increased from 200 in 2024-25 to 300 in 2025-26 . We have 16 teachers and have all the facilities like that of a private school. The betterment in facilities due to better funding from the government has helped us change the mindset of parents towards government schools.'
Launched on September 5, 2022, the PM SHRI scheme is aimed to select 14,500 existing schools from across the country for upgradation and is expected to benefit 1.8 million students. Under the scheme, 13,076 schools have been selected in 33 states and Union Territories (UTs). Among the 1,888 PM SHRI schools in Uttar Pradesh, Prayagraj has the highest 61 schools selected under the centrally-sponsored scheme. In Varanasi, there are 23 PM SHRI schools, including two Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs) and one Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (JNV).
Nawapur resident Rekha Gond, who has enrolled his grandson in the PM SHRI school, said, 'This school has all the facilities including drinking water, clean toilets, playground and smart classroom. Seeing my grandson's learning improvement, children from my nearby houses have also enrolled their kids.'
Santosh Kumar Dubey, principal of PM SHRI Composite School, Besahupur said the attendance of students in his school has improved to 90% from 70% after becoming part of the central scheme in 2023. 'Students love the learning environment and come to school regularly,' he said.
Sanjay Kumar Yadav, block education officer (BEO) of Sevapuri said that there 155 UP-government run schools in his block and two of them – Composite School Besahupur and Primary School Thatara (first) are designated as PM SHRI schools and getting a funding of ₹1.10 lakh as grants compared to ₹60,000 before becoming part of the scheme.
'On the models of PM SHRI schools, we have provided smart TVs in all our government schools with the help of NGOs and panchayat officials. Like PM SHRI schools, teachers in other schools are also teaching students in a joyful learning environment to improve learning levels and attendance percentage. We regularly hold meetings of principals of government schools with PM SHRI schools wherein we share best pedagogy practices,' he said.
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