Delhi
Graphic book for well-being
New Delhi, August 29. A new graphic illustrations book for adolescents titled Lets Move Forward was launched by Dharmendra Pradhan, Union education minister, to guide adolescents to maintain holistic well-being. The book focuses on interpersonal relationships, gender equality and substance abuse prevention, among other issues.
A collaborative effort of NCERT and Unesco, this book is accessible in multiple languages and will be distributed to state education ministries, teacher education colleges, and institutes of advanced study in education, among other educational and health institutions nationwide.
Initiated under the Ayushman Bharat campaign of April 2018 launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the School Health & Wellness Programme is being implemented by the Union education and health and family welfare ministries.
Assam
New open university
Guwahati, August 3. The state’s Krishna Kanta Handique State Open University (KKHSOU) has become the country’s only open university to introduce four-year undergraduate courses as mandated by NEP 2020. Moreover, all KKHSOU academic programmes have been restructured according to UGC’s Academic Bank of Credits framework. Currently, KKHSOU offers 44 study programmes at 276 study centres and a regional centre in Jorhat.
“The degrees and diplomas of the open university are on a par with other universities offering regular courses, and our government is recognising it for future recruitments,” said Ranoj Pegu, the state’s education minister, addressing the media.
The minister also urged students denied admission into college undergraduate courses to register with KKHSOU.
Haryana
Sapling nurturance scheme
Chandigarh, august 3. Kunwar Pal, the state’s education minister, announced that students of government schools, who plant a sapling in class IX and nurture it until class XII, will be awarded additional 15 marks in their class XII school-leaving examination.
“A detailed proposal in this connection will soon be notified. Marks will be awarded on the basis of the health of planted trees,” said the minister after a meeting with school education officials. He also directed forest department officers to ensure availability of saplings and education ministry officials to appoint liaison officers in each school to coordinate with forest department officers.
Madhya Pradesh
Third child penalty
Bhind, August 8. The service of a government school teacher of CM Rise School in Bhind district has been terminated for concealing information about his three children while accepting employment in March, in violation of the government’s two-child norm.
Addressing the media, school principal Tikam Singh said: “According to the state government’s General Administration Department (GAD) order, a third child should not be born to a government employee after January 26, 2001.”
The termination order said a complaint against the teacher was found to be true following an investigation by the district education officer.
Uttarakhand
Hindi medical education
Dehradun, August 11. The state government is all set to introduce professional medical education in Hindi in state medical colleges from September 1.
“In a gift to students with Hindi as their medium of instruction, Uttarakhand will be the second state in the country after Madhya Pradesh to introduce such an initiative. Mansukh Mandaviya, the Union health minister, has agreed to formally launch the MBBS courses in Hindi in the state’s medical colleges,” said minister of health and education Dhan Singh Rawat, addressing a press conference.
The syllabus for the Hindi degree programme has been prepared by a state government-appointed committee of expert medicos, who studied the Madhya Pradesh model before adapting it for medical colleges of Uttarakhand, he added.
Punjab
Student police scheme
Chandigarh, august 22. In collaboration with the community affairs, police and education ministries, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann introduced a Student Police Cadet (SPC) scheme.
Starting this year the course curriculum formulated by the Bureau of Police Research and Development, will be taught over two years to class VIII students. The state government has allocated Rs.50,000 per annum for each school towards the scheme which will be implemented in all districts statewide.
Under the scheme, students will visit police offices, police stations, cyber cells, forensic science labs and police training centres. They will also be taught traffic rules and regulations, unarmed combat and legal rights and laws, and encouraged to participate in Republic Day and Independence Day parades.
Paromita Sengupta with bureau inputs
