Excelsior Correspondent
New Delhi, Mar 10: Minister of Education Syed Mohammad Altaf Bukhari called on Union Minister for Human Resource Development, Prakash Javadekar here this evening to press for release of additional funding to J&K in key areas of school and higher education sectors besides incorporating more courses under the Prime Minister’s Special Scholarship Scheme (PMSSS).
Bukhari is in Delhi to give a flip to J&K’s education sector seeking central support by way of additional funding for augmentation educational infrastructure in the State. Senior officers of the State’s Education Department accompanied Bukhari.
While assuring full support from the Central Government, Javadekar said his priority would be to raise the quality of education and ensure that it encouraged innovation in Jammu and Kashmir. He also assured full financial support for meeting out liabilities created on account of SSA/RMSA salaries in the State.
Bukhari raised the issue of release of pending central share of funding under SSA. He informed the HRD Minister about the Programme Approval Board (PAB) that had approved work plan under SSA for an amount of Rs 2062.54 crore (Rs 1856.29 Crore Central share & Rs 206.25 Crore State Share) out of which only Rs 1025.22 crore has been released till date by the Union Ministry.
The Education Minister said that the funds are urgently needed to defray the salaries of teachers, who have not been paid their dues since September 2016.
Similarly, the Minister also discussed slow funding under RMSA highlighting that out of Rs 500.65 crore of central share, only Rs 149.47 crore have been released by the Govt of India till date.
In order to rejuvenate and revive the education sector and to create and enable quality learning environment for holistic personality development of the children, Bukhari asked the center for a special fund of Rs 300 crore for the recently designated 146 Chief Minister’s Model schools in the State.
He asked for Rs 100 crore funding under Prime Minister’s Development Programme (PMDP) for creation of additional infrastructure and hostels in each out-campus of Kashmir University and Jammu University, Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University and Islamic University for Science & Technology, Awantipora.
He also asked for special PMDP funding of Rs 100 crore for upgradation of infrastructure/campus and labs to enhance intake capacity/residential campus for faculty /students at GCET, Jammu.
Under special PMDP, the Minister asked for funding of Rs 200 crore (Rs 5 crore per college) for construction of 40 more hostels for students from far-flung / remote areas across the State. In addition, he also impressed on the Union Minister to use his office for expediting release of Rs 50 crore to J&K from MHRD/UGC under PMDP for construction of 7 Girls Hostels.
Bukhari also asked the MHRD to release balance funds of Rs 164.56 crore for Cluster Universities, two engineering colleges at Safapora (Kashmir) and Kathua (Jammu) and vocationalisation, model colleges and other Infrastructure under RUSA.
The Minister of Education also impressed on MHRD to expedite establishment of permanent campuses for IIT, IIM and IIMC, besides appointment of Director for NIT Srinagar, IIT Jammu & IIM Jammu. The meeting also discussed speedy release of Rs 100 crore under PMDP for upgradation of NIT Srinagar.
The Minister also discussed revalidation of 30 KGBVs and 311 Primary School buildings sanctioned over the years upto 2009-10 but could not be executed due to land issues and cost escalation.
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