PM Modi okays 20 more KGBVs in Telangana: Kishan

Hyderabad: Union Minister of Tourism and Culture G Kishan Reddy said 15 per cent of the total 4,982 Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (KGBVs) are located in Telangana. "I thank Prime Minister for sanctioning an additional 20 KGBVs in 2022-2023.

The KGBVs are set up across the country with an aim to promote education of girls belonging to disadvantaged groups like SC, ST, OBC, Minority and BPL in Educationally Backward Blocks (EBBs). The set-up of these institutions was done under the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan, a centrally sponsored scheme of the Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education. As on July 13, a total of 4,982 KGBVs are operational in the country.

The aim of the redesigned Samagra Shiksha Scheme is to universalise access to school education; promote equity through the inclusion of disadvantaged groups and weaker sections and improve the quality of education across all levels of school education from pre-primary to class XII. Samagra Shiksha recommends enhancing the scheme's direct outreach by providing child-centric interventions directly to the students through DBT mode.

Of the total 4,982 functional KGBVs, 696 functional KGBVs are currently operating in the Telangana, making it the State with the highest number of Balika Vidyalayas in the country after Uttar Pradesh. For 2022-2023, 20 out of 31 new KGBVs that have been sanctioned across the country have been done in Telangana. In the last four years, since 2018 more than 104 KGBV schools have been sanctioned for construction.

With the promise of providing education to all, the government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been continuously working towards reforming the education sector. The new 20 KGBVs will ensure access and quality education to the girls and students from the SC and ST communities of Telangana, he added.

"The KGBVs provide residential facilities to the students which develop a feeling of community living, unity and harmony. There is a scope of a lot of other activities, vocational training, skill development and social interaction which will help the students for their future career development and overall growth", said the Minister.