It stands for Pradhan Mantri Schools for Rising India, is a recently launched centrally sponsored scheme in India. This initiative, approved by the Cabinet on September 7, 2022, is aimed at setting up more than 14,500 PM SHRI Schools by enhancing existing schools. These schools will be spread across the country and managed by various entities, including the Central government, State/UT Government, and local bodies.
Under this scheme, a maximum of two schools (one Elementary and one Secondary/Senior Secondary) will be selected per block/Urban Local Body (ULB), with an upper limit on the total number of schools across India. The duration of the scheme is proposed to be from the financial year 2022-23 to 2026-27, after which the responsibility of maintaining the benchmarks achieved by these schools will shift to the respective States/UTs.
The selection of PM SHRI schools will be conducted through a three-stage process, known as the Challenge Mode. In the first stage, States/UTs sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Centre, committing to support these schools in achieving specified quality standards. The second stage involves identifying a pool of eligible schools based on certain minimum benchmarks. Finally, the third stage is a competitive challenge where schools from the eligible pool compete to fulfill specific criteria, verified through physical inspection.
The scheme has a total project cost of Rs. 27,360 crore over five years, including a central share of Rs. 18,128 crore. It focuses on various key interventions for modernizing and holistically transforming education. These include:
1. Quality and Innovation, which encompasses Learning Enhancement Programs, Holistic Progress Cards, Innovative Pedagogies, Bagless days, Internships with local artisans, and Capacity building.
2. Beneficiary-oriented Entitlements under the Right to Education (RTE) Act.
3. Annual School Grants, including Composite School grants, Library grants, and Sports grants.
4. Early Childhood Care and Education, including Balvatika and Foundational Literacy and Numeracy.
5. Equity and Inclusion, with a focus on providing safe and appropriate infrastructure for girls and children with special needs.
6. Flexibility in the choice of subjects offered to students.
7. Encouragement of mother tongue as the medium of instruction, using technology to bridge language barriers.
8. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) enhancements, smart classrooms, and digital libraries.
9. Strengthening existing infrastructure.
10. Vocational interventions and enhancing internship/entrepreneurship opportunities, especially with local industries.
These schools are intended to showcase the implementation of the National Education Policy 2020 and serve as exemplar schools, offering leadership to other schools in their regions. The emphasis is on providing high-quality, equitable, inclusive, and joyful education, catering to the diverse backgrounds, multilingual needs, and varying academic abilities of students.
For more detailed information, you can visit the official PM SHRI website and the Press Information Bureau release.
