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Arunachal Minister stresses quality education over pass percentages

Itanagar, Mar 16 (UNI) Arunachal Pradesh Education Minister Pasang Dorjee Sona on Sunday underscored the need to shift the focus from merely increasing pass percentages to enhancing the overall quality of education in schools.
Emphasizing practical reforms, he suggested that under the PM Poshan Scheme, priority should be given to constructing simple kitchen sheds rather than elaborate structures, ensuring optimal use of funds.
Chairing a high-level review meeting at Tezu in Lohit district, the Minister urged authorities to prioritize schools requiring urgent attention and align developmental proposals with the needs of local MLAs. He recommended repurposing closed schools into Anganwadi centers to address the infrastructure deficiencies.
Sona, who also holds the portfolios of Rural Works Department and Tourism, further advocated for the Chief Minister's Rural Connectivity Scheme to be utilized for key infrastructure projects that do not qualify under the PMGSY guidelines.
Highlighting the importance of tourism promotion, the Minister suggested creating a comprehensive tourist arrivals dataset to facilitate better planning and monitoring of the sector.
Additionally, he stressed the need for in-depth research into various government schemes and called for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives to be directed toward community welfare and sustainable development.
The review meeting held at the Mini Secretariat, Tezu focused on addressing critical challenges in the sectors of education, agriculture, health, and infrastructure in the district.
Earlier, Lohit Deputy Commissioner Kesang Ngurup Damo initiated the meeting by outlining its objectives, highlighting the commitment of officials to adopt schools as mentors to improve education quality.
The education sector took center stage, with discussions focusing on the acute shortage of 70-80 teachers, the need for an additional 30 vocational education teachers, and the delayed hostel stipends for 2024-25. There was also a proposal to shift from annual stipend distribution to a quarterly basis to ease financial planning for students and ensure smoother disbursement.
In the agriculture sector, concerns were raised about the limited reach of the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY), with only 49 beneficiaries and inadequate funding. The officials called for increased financial support and highlighted the urgent need for solar fencing to prevent crop destruction by wild elephants.
Infrastructure challenges were also discussed, including delays in the TR Camp Road project and the widening digital divide affecting government programs like the Poshan Tracker. The issue of low honorariums for Anganwadi workers was also raised, with officials recommending an increase to better support these essential community workers.
Tezu MLA Dr Mohesh Chai stressed the urgency of flood mitigation in the Lohit district, proposing long-term solutions and a comprehensive drainage master plan for urban areas. He urged officials to take the review process seriously for effective implementation.
Mentor Secretary Sumedha Yadav suggested using cooperative models to enhance the economic viability of government schemes and encouraged stakeholder feedback for better planning and execution of projects in the district.
The meeting concluded with a collective commitment to address the development challenges facing the Lohit district through transparent implementation and efficient resource allocation. The outcomes of this meeting will serve as a roadmap for future progress, officials said.
UNI TD BD
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