Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik launched the Odisha Adarsh Vidyalaya (OAV) project at Sasan Ambagaon village in his home constituency Hinjli in Ganjam district on Tuesday with an aim to provide modern schools on the lines of Kendriya Vidyalayas in the underdeveloped rural pockets of the State.
The government aims at opening one Adarsh Vidyalaya in each of the 314 revenue blocks of the State. On Tuesday, 100 of these schools started functioning with the official launch of the project. The inauguration ceremony organised on the premises of the newly-constructed Vidyalaya at Sasan Ambagaon was attended by Naveen Patnaik, and Ministers including Mass Education Minister Debi Prasad Mishra, Minister for Higher Education Pradeep Panigrahy, Usha Devi and Bikram Arukh.
Adarsh Vidyalayas are expected to have hostel facility in future and will be affiliated to the CBSE. They would have English as the first language and Odia as the second language as medium of teaching. These schools will have teacher-pupil ratio of 1:25 and classroom-student ratio of 1:40. Around 50 per cent of total seats would be reserved for the scheduled categories and girls.
The State government has appointed special teachers and principals and these schools are to be managed by the Odisha Adarsh Vidyalaya Sangathan, formed by the State like the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan.
This year, admissions were for Classes VI, VII and VIII. In future, these schools will have classes up to XII. The schools will provide free education to students along with free uniforms and other study materials. However, there are allegations that it is a former Central scheme being projected as a project of the BJD government. Speaking to The Hindu , former Union Minister and Congress leader Chandra Sekhar Sahu termed the launch as a political move keeping the coming panchayat elections in view.
According to him, the Odisha government should have devoted its efforts in solving the existing problems and dismal standard of education in government schools and taken steps to end the agitation of government teachers.
