Ajay Bhatt, Union Minister of State for Defence, has said that approval has been given for around two dozen Sainik Schools in the public-private partnership (PPP) mode across the country.
He was here on Saturday to formally open the first-of-its-kind Sainik School batch in PPP mode in the State at the Bharatiya Vidya Niketan-run Veda Vyasa Vidyalaya at Malaparamba.
100 schools to be opened
Mr. Bhatt said that the Sainik Schools Society had been getting many applications for setting up similar batches. “As many as 100 such schools will be opened in the country. There is heavy demand from all regions. I think we may have to increase the number of such schools considering the number of requests. Many Members of Parliament are coming up with requests,” the Minister said.
Mr. Bhatt, however, claimed that some schools did not meet the criteria to get the approval. “We approve the proposals only if they meet our criteria. If they don’t, we request them to take steps to meet the criteria,” he said. From Kerala, there were around six applications, he added.
Veda Vyasa Vidyalaya got the approval for admissions to Class 6 in August last and the academic sessions started in September. There are 50 students in the first batch. There will be two batches with 40 students each in the next academic year.
Earlier, Mr. Bhatt interacted with the National Cadet Corps (NCC) cadets and visited the 122 Battalion of the Madras Regiment of the Territorial Army.
How such schools operate
According to the Union Defence Ministry, the infrastructure, faculty, and other requirements for starting these batches are met by those running the school. The Union government does not allocate funds. However, an annual support on merit-cum-means basis of up to 50% fee, subject to an upper limit of ₹40,000 per student per year for up to 50% of class strength, subject to an upper limit of 50 students per class per year, will be provided by the Centre through the Sainik Schools Society.
