Primary schools in Lucknow & other UP districts to be upgraded with child-friendly furniture

The Uttar Pradesh Education Department has set the ball rolling for new upgrades at about 26,599 upper primary schools in the state. Specials sanctions have been released to boost the education infrastructure of these institutes with the addition of child-friendly furniture. Until now, students used to sit on floor mats in classes.

Safe & comfortable furniture for UP schools

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The state of Uttar Pradesh runs around 45,625 upper primary schools for students from Classes 6 to 8. Of these, around 58% of schools, across 70 districts, will be aided by a ₹327 crore budget to install children-friendly desks, chairs and related classroom furniture. This sanction is a part of the total ₹488 crores set aside to implement the same provision, state-wide.

While most primary schools in UP have been shut since last year, due to the virus outbreak and the consequent lockdown, new and comfortable furniture will be in place for the students this year. The new desks and chairs will be safe, comfortable and have adequate space to hold the students' bags, books, notebooks and water bottles. Reportedly, a similar order was passed for a section of these schools in 2017-2018. However, a majority of institutes still lack furniture.

New upgrade to boost admissions in schools

Divisional Assistant Director (Basic Education), Ramesh Kumar Tiwari, informed that all required furniture will be procured from the government's one-stop e-marketplace portal. The entire process will be supervised by a committee headed by respective district magistrates, he added. "The furniture will be child-friendly and provide adequate space between the desk and the chair, keeping in mind the different age groups of the students," Tiwari said.

Officials of the state believe that the new furniture will help to improve classroom workings and instil the values of pride and self-confidence among millions of students, who compare their resources with that of private schools. The upgrade is also expected to bolster admission in these schools