45 schools in two TN districts to benefit from public-private partnership

[rajoe]

45 schools in two TN districts to benefit from public-private partnership

Forty-five schools in Tiruvallur and Hosur are set to become better study environments with help from private undertakings. Caterpillar
India Private Limited (the manufacturer of earth-moving equipment has facilities in both districts) and Smile Foundation, a development organisation headquartered in New Delhi, will work with the Tamil Nadu government under the Pallikal Valarpom (school improvement) scheme to help the schools. The project, scheduled to be executed over three years, will be launched on Wednesday.

Kick-started by the state government in March this year, the scheme allows private firms to adopt schools in order to better existing infrastructure. A growing number of corporates and NGOs are expressing interest in participating in the venture based on the public-private partnership (PPP) model, officials from the department of school education said.

Speaking to TOI on Monday, Naresh Chaudhary, chief operating officer, Smile Foundation, said, "We will be working on improving the quality of education in seven schools in the first phase. This includes installing better infrastructure such as construction of toilets for girls. It is widely known that the inadequacy of such facilities is one of the reasons for dropouts in government schools. We will construct labs, libraries and improve flooring, wherever required, so that children can study comfortably. In certain schools, we will also arrange for remedial education for students from Classes IX to XII by arranging coaching classes after school hours."

Estimated to cost US $ 64,000 (Rs 34,12,800), the first phase would last six months, Chaudhary said. P U P S School, Vidayur, Kadamhathur; P U Middle School, Vengathur; P U Primary School, Melnallathur; Government Girls High School, Manvalnagar; K E M C Government Higher Secondary School, Manvalangar; CSI High School, Ikkadu; and R M Jain Government Girls Higher Secondary School, V M Nagar would be the initial beneficiaries. Chaudhary added, "We want this to be a trendsetter as there are several MNCs in the area. The move can benefit children of all the locals employed in these units."

School education director P Perumalsamy also said that the scheme continued to find many takers in districts across the state. "We have been getting requests from all the districts since companies only need to sign an MoU with the chief education officer. They are required to spend at least Rs 3 lakh on a primary school and Rs 5 lakh for a middle school. We are closely monitoring its progress and want to consolidate information about the various initiatives that are being undertaken across the state in this regard. We plan to focus on this scheme in a big way next year

source:TOI

[dennan]

this is really great idea
with the private company undertaking the schools with infrastructure improvement in scholl