Edu Deptt completes 544 civil works worth Rs 98 Cr in a year
Target to complete projects worth Rs 250 Cr this year: Director Samagra Shiksha
Srinagar: The School Education Department (SED) is witnessing a massive augmentation of the school infrastructure which is likely to fill the infrastructural gaps in government-run educational institutions.
As per the official data, the SED has taken up augmentation of infrastructure in schools to provide adequate accommodation besides other facilities to the school-going children.
During the last (2021-22) financial year, the SED completed around 432 civil works approved under different components of the centrally-sponsored scheme Samagra Shiksha worth Rs 142 crore.
“In the last five months, we completed around 112 civil works with an expenditure of Rs 56 crore,” Project Director Samagra Shiksha J&K, Deep Raj told.
The execution of projects, particularly the construction of school buildings has been speeded up at a time when complaints about the dearth of classrooms in schools are pouring in from across Kashmir.
Given the non-availability of adequate classrooms in schools, the students have been left at the receiving end and are deprived of basic facilities of a classroom in schools.
As per the official data, of the 78,388 works, the department is yet to take up work on 14,348 projects at the elementary school level.
These include Upper Primary School (UPS) buildings in which of the 1181 works, the department is yet to take up 120 buildings.
The Centre has approved around 25,015 additional classrooms to overcome the accommodation crunch in schools but work on 3156 rooms is yet to be started.
Deep Raj said that they had fixed the target to complete the projects worth Rs 250 crore during the current financial year.
“Lt Governor inaugurated 84 school buildings on August 10. Our efforts are on to pace up the construction work on the projects to provide adequate infrastructure to the students in schools,” Raj said.
Notably, the GoI had approved around 99 KGBVs of which the construction of over 50 KGBV buildings was yet to be taken up.
“There are some gaps at certain levels which can’t be overcome overnight. Some KGBV buildings were sanctioned in 2007 and 2008 but the construction on these buildings is going on now,” he said. “The work has now been expedited and all the projects will be completed within the next three years. There will be no infrastructural gaps in schools after three years.”
