The Jammu and Kashmir Tribal Affairs Departments (TAD) approved a series of hostel reforms on July 2 with the goal of providing state-of-the-art educational facilities to tribal students and emphasising outcome-based quality education and skilling. A number of measures and schemes were approved by a Union Territory-level committee led by Shahid Iqbal Choudhary, Secretary, TAD. These will be implemented immediately beginning with the current academic year.
New scheme for hostel students announced
The TAD approved the ‘Technology Enabled Education Scheme’ for hostel students in Class 11, 12, and PG courses, as per an official statement.
The students will be given tabs, PCs with pre-loaded study material that includes books, animations, mind-maps, resource materials, and references. The official further informed that students will be allowed to own a tab even after the completion of the course while adding that more than 1000 students will be given these tabs before July 31.
The Tribal Research Institute (TRI) has been given the responsibility of course and content design for tabs and distributing it to pupils, as per the official.
Hostel tuition system to get boost
The official said that the tuition system of hostels was also given a boost with improvement in Classes 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 tutors’ honorarium, raising it to Rs 3000, Rs 4500 and Rs 6000 per month from Rs 1,000, Rs 1,200 and Rs 1,500 respectively.
He also stated that the TAD has informed him that hostels will run and remain operational for 12 months rather than the current 10-month a year system in place in order to provide educational facilities to students throughout the year.
Special courses to be run in vacation period
The official informed that the special courses will be run during the vacation period for skilling of students including tribal students volunteering to enroll for such courses.
The committee also approved a 75% increase in the daily diet rate, raising it to Rs 175 per student per day with immediate effect from the current Rs 100 per student per day, according to the official.
He also stated that the committee recommended an increase to Rs 300 per student per day, which will be included in the revised budget.
Proposal for 25 new hostels reviewed
According to the official, the committee also considered the proposal for 25 new hostels, which was approved for the current fiscal year at a cost of Rs 100 crore, as well as the completion of stalled hostels, many of which had been pending for several years due to a lack of necessary approvals and codal formalities.
