Bhubaneswar, May 19 (UNI) Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has highly praised the ongoing door-to-door survey conducted by Odisha’s School and Mass Education Department, aimed at reducing dropout rates among children aged 0–18 years.

While reviewing the performance of the department on Monday, Pradhan stated that the survey is a commendable step in identifying out-of-school children and could serve as a model initiative in the state government’s efforts to reintegrate these children into mainstream education.

The survey will also gather vital data, including the children's mother tongue, the number of children with disabilities, and projections for student enrollment in the upcoming academic year, the Minister added.

During the review, the Union Minister assessed several key aspects of school education in the state: school coverage, infrastructure development, textbook and learning material preparation aligned with the national curriculum, teacher skill development, and the implementation status of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

The meeting was attended by Odisha’s Minister of School and Mass Education Nityananda Gond; Union Education Secretary Sanjay Kumar; Odisha’s School and Mass Education Secretary Shalini Pandit; State Project Director of OSEPA Ananya Das; and senior officials from both the central and state governments.

Discussions focused on the successful implementation of centrally sponsored schemes in Odisha, and on various initiatives undertaken to expedite the rollout of NEP 2020 across the state.

According to official sources, a steering committee has been constituted to ensure effective management of nursery schools being established in every primary school across Odisha.

The committee will also oversee the development of the state curriculum in alignment with national guidelines.

Key topics included the holistic development of infrastructure from primary to higher secondary levels, successful implementation of the PM SHRI Yojana, wider outreach of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Residential Schools and Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas, emphasis on pre-school education, Odisha’s contributions to textbook development, and the expansion of ICT and digital learning.

It was also noted that, beginning this academic year, the Chief Minister’s Nutrition Scheme has been integrated with the PM POSHAN initiative.

Under this program, students from nursery to Class 10 are being provided with mid-day meals, nutritious ladoos three days a week, and an additional egg.

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