Indian Tribal News Service
Jammu
With the focus on outcome-based quality education and skilling, the Union Territory-level committee headed by Secretary, TAD, Shahid Iqbal Choudhary, on Saturday, approved a number of measures and schemes to be launched with immediate effect from the current academic year for providing state-of-the-art educational facilities to tribal students.
The department approved the ‘Technology Enabled Education Scheme’ for hostel students under which students enrolled in Class 11, 12 and PG courses will be provided tabs-PCs with pre-loaded study material including books, animations, mind-maps, resource material and references. Over 1,000 students studying in notified classes will be provided these tabs before July 31.
The students will be allowed to own the tab even after being relieved from hostels on completion of course, an official said adding the Tribal Research Institute (TRI) has been entrusted with course and content design for tabs and providing to students.
This apart, giving a fillip to the tuition system in hostels approval was also accorded to enhancement in the honorarium for tutors increasing it from the existing rates of Rs 1,000, Rs 1,200 and Rs 1,500 for tutors of Classes 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 11 and 12 to Rs 3000, Rs 4500 and Rs 6000 per month, respectively.
In a bid to provide educational facilities to students throughout the year, the TAD has notified that hostels will operate and remain functional for 12 months instead of the present 10-month a year system in vogue. “Special courses will be run during the vacation period for skilling of students including tribal students volunteering to enroll for such courses,” the official said.
The committee also accorded approval for 75 percent enhancement in the daily diet rate increasing it to Rs 175 per student per day with immediate effect, up from existing Rs 100 per student per day and further recommended enhancement to Rs 300 per student per day to be taken up in revised estimates of budget.
Further, the committee also reviewed the proposal for 25 new hostels which are being approved for current financial year at a cost of Rs 100 crore and completion of languishing hostels, many of which were pending in absence of requisite approvals and codal formalities for past many years
The approval was given at a meeting which was among others attended by Special Secretary, Harun Malik, Secretary Gujjar and Bakerwal Advisory Board, Mukhtar Ahmed Choudhary, Director Tribal Affairs, Mushir Ahmed Mirza and Financial Advisor Ashok Thukaan.
