Lok Sabha Question No. 340 (STARRED), answered on 2026-03-16
Subject: Education System at Seemanchal Region in Bihar
Ministry: EDUCATION
Asked by: Shri Tariq Anwar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION

## DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION AND LITERACY

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO340

ANSWERED ON- 16.03.2026

## EDUCATION SYSTEM AT SEEMANCHAL REGION IN BIHAR

†*340. Shri Tariq Anwar:

Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of concrete steps taken by the Government to provide nutritious meals to the students under the Mid-Day Meal Scheme in Bihar, particularly in the Seemanchal region;
- (b)  whether  any  specific  study  or  intervention  programme  has  been  introduced  by  the  National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) to curb the drop-out rate rising in the said areas, as mentioned in the UNESCO 2023 report, if so, the details thereof;
- (c) the details of the progress of the ongoing schemes for providing of digital infrastructure and for filling up vacant posts of teachers in the schools of the said backward regions under the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan; and
- (d) the extent to which the provisions of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, particularly those related  to  multilingual  education  and  Early  Childhood  Care  and  Education  (ECCE)  have  been implemented in line with the NCERT framework in the sensitive regions like Seemanchal?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF EDUCATION

## (SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN)

(a) to (d):

A statement is laid on the table of the House.

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## STATEMENT  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (A)  TO  (D)  OF  LOK  SABHA STARRED  QUESTION  NO.  340  FOR  16.03.2026  RAISED  BY  SHRI  TARIQ  ANWAR, HON'BLE  MP  REGARDING  EDUCATION  SYSTEM  AT  SEEMANCHAL  REGION  IN BIHAR.

(a): Education is in the Concurrent List of the Constitution and most of the Government Schools and School Boards are under the administration of the State Governments and Union Territory (UT) Administrations.  Pradhan  Mantri  Poshan  Shakti  Nirman  (PM  POSHAN)  Scheme  is  one  of  the foremost rights based Centrally Sponsored Scheme implemented in partnership with the States and UTs for providing one hot cooked and nutritious meal to all children studying in Bal Vatika (just before class-I) and classes I to VIII of Government and Government-aided schools, including those in  Bihar.  The  Scheme covers about 11 crore  children in more than 10.35 lakh schools in all the States/UTs. The overall responsibility for smooth functioning of the scheme including providing hot cooked  and  nutritious  meal  to  the  eligible  children  as  well  as  engagement  of  cook-cum-helpers (CCHs) lies with the States/UTs. The State/UTs are encouraged to decide menu suitable to the local conditions within the prescribed nutrition and food norms and to procure locally grown food items. During FY 2025-26, central assistance of Rs. 1274.39 crore has been released to the state of Bihar under PM POSHAN Scheme benefitting more than 1 crore students in 68,357 schools. The number of schools and children benefitting from PM POSHAN Scheme in Seemanchal region in Bihar are as follows:

| District   |   Number of Schools |   Number of children |
|------------|---------------------|----------------------|
| Araria     |                1933 |               309791 |
| Purnia     |                2204 |               392659 |
| Katihar    |                1892 |               371858 |
| Kishanganj |                1697 |               214310 |

*Source: Government of Bihar

Further,  measures  such  as  school  nutrition  gardens,  regular  health  check-ups,  community participation,  and  monitoring  through  inspection  are  undertaken  to  ensure  quality  and  nutritious meals, including in Seemanchal region in Bihar.

(b):  The key reasons for drop out as identified by States/UTs include migration, socio economic condition of families, domestic responsibilities on children, lack of interest of children, poor health of children, etc.

The  Ministry  of  Education  supports  all  States  and  UTs  for  different  interventions  like composite school grant to every school for providing a conducive learning environment, grants for science labs, libraries, sports and physical activities, support for Rashtriya Avishkar Abhiyan, ICT and digital initiatives, School Leadership development programme, remedial teaching for academically weaker students, etc.

In order to reduce dropout the Samagra Shiksha Scheme includes the provision of opening and strengthening of new schools up to senior secondary level; construction of school buildings and additional classrooms; setting up, up-gradation and running of Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas; setting  up  of  Netaji  Subhash  Chandra  Bose  Avasiya  Vidyalayas;  free  uniforms,  free  text  books, transport allowance, undertaking enrolment & retention drives, construction of hostels under Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan for unsaturated ST population, reimbursement under RTE Act,  various  qualitative  components,  strengthening  of  teacher  education  and  strengthening  of DIETs/BRCs/CRCs, provision of ICT.

Under the student-oriented component for the children with special needs of the scheme, financial assistance is provided for identification and assessment of children with special needs, aids and  appliances,  braille  kits  and  books,  appropriate  teaching  learning  material  and  stipend  to  girl students with disability etc.

Under  Samagra  Shiksha  scheme,  provision  has  been  made  also  for  giving  preference  to Special  Focus  Districts  (SFDs),  Educationally  Backward  Blocks  (EEBs),  LWE  (Left  Wing Extremism) affected districts, and aspirational districts while planning interventions.

Government  has  also  taken  initiatives  such  as  Vidya  Samiksha  Kendra  (VSK)  and implementation of Automated Permanent Academic Account Registry (APAAR) ID to monitor the drop out and other education indicators. VSK has been developed with strategies designed to enhance the effectiveness of monitoring of educational initiatives and their eventual outcomes. A key feature of VSK is tracking of dropout students, monitoring of students migrating from one school to the other,  progress  of  learning  outcomes  and  real-time  monitoring  of  various  interventions,  aimed  at improving  access,  students'  academic  performance  and  enhancing  teachers'  accountability  in schools. APAAR, as part of the 'One Nation, One Student ID' programme, is a 12-digit lifelong student ID that is linked to Aadhar.

(c):  Under Samagra Shiksha, financial assistance is provided to all States/UTs including State of Bihar, for setting up ICT Labs and Smart Classrooms in Government and Government Aided Schools having classes VI to XII. Ministry of Education has advised all States/ UTs including State of Bihar to enter into Memorandum of Understandings ( MoUs)/ Agreements with BSNL to provide FTTH internet  connections  to  Government  schools  having  computing  devices.  The  recurring  Internet charges  would  be  met  from  funds  approved  under  Samagra  Shiksha  or  any  other  State/  UT Government funds. The details of  ICT Labs, Smart Classrooms,  and Internet connectivity in the districts of Seemanchal region in Bihar is as under:

| Districts   |   ICT Labs |   Smart Classrooms |   Internet Connectivity |
|-------------|------------|--------------------|-------------------------|
| Araria      |        166 |                177 |                     861 |
| Purnia      |        261 |                363 |                    1116 |
| Katihar     |        187 |                268 |                     976 |
| Kishanganj  |        122 |                115 |                     634 |

*Source: UDISE+ 2024-25

Under Samagra Shiksha, teacher capacity building for digital education is being supported through the Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing ( DIKSHA) platform, which provides econtent and digital learning resources. The Ministry of Education has also implemented NISHTHA as an integrated teacher training programme on DIKSHA, which includes modules related to the use of ICT and technology in teaching and learning. Further, NCERT, State Councils of Educational Research  and  Training  (SCERTs),  District  Institutes  of  Education  and  Training (DIETs),  Block Resource Centres (BRCs) and Cluster Resource Centres (CRCs) undertake development of resource material, digital content, training programmes and workshops to strengthen teachers' preparedness for digital education.

NCTE has notified ITEP, a 4-year integrated dual-major bachelor degree in Education as well as  a  specialized  subject  in  arts,  science,  physical  education  etc  for  pre-service  teachers.  Being digitally literate and skilled to leverage technology for improving teaching-learning and assessment processes is one of the capacities sought to be developed by all student-teachers under ITEP.

Education  being  a  subject  in  the  Concurrent  List  of  the  Constitution,  the  recruitment, deployment, service conditions and professional development of teachers are primarily under the administrative  control  of  the  respective  States/  UTs.  Accordingly,  the  information  relating  to sanctioned and vacant posts of teachers is maintained by the concerned States/UTs.

Recruitment of teachers is a continuous process undertaken by the respective States/UTs in accordance with their recruitment rules and procedures. Vacancies arise from time to time due to factors  such  as  retirement,  resignation,  creation  of  new  posts  consequent  to  enhanced  student enrolment  and  establishment  of  new  schools.  The  timeline  for  filling  up  such  vacancies  is  also determined by the respective States/ UTs.

The  Government  of  India  also  periodically  reviews  the  progress  relating  to  filling  up  of teacher vacancies with States/UTs through review meetings and advisories, emphasising recruitment through  transparent  and  merit-based  selection  processes,  including  competitive  examinations conducted  by  autonomous  teacher  recruitment  boards  and  technology-based  teacher  requirement planning and forecasting exercises.

(d):  In  the  NEP,  2020,  for  the  first  time,  3  years  of  pre-schools  (Balvatika)  is  recognized  as  a continuum of education in the 5+3+3+4 structure where the foundational stage is 3 years of preschool  and  grade  1  &  grade  2.  The  Ministry  of  Education  through  the  schemes/  programmes/ initiatives has ensured that the States & Union Territories (UTs) receive adequate central support to integrate three years of pre-primary education into the new Foundational Stage (FS).

In  order  to  integrate  the  pre-school  (Balvatika)  in  the  foundational  stage  and  to  promote multilingualism, following progress has been made:

- NIPUN  Bharat  Mission:  As  envisaged  in  NEP  2020,  a  flagship  national  mission  called 'NIPUN Bharat' was launched on 5th July, 2021 for ensuring that every child in the country necessarily attains FLN by the end of Grade 2. This Mission has been set up under the aegis of the Samagra Shiksha. All 36 States/Union Territories are implementing NIPUN-Bharat Mission (NBM). Financial norms for the following components are provided under the NBM:
- Support to pre-school education/co-located anganwadi centers (recurring & non-recurring)
- Teaching Learning Materials for implementation of Innovative pedagogies
- Teacher Resource Material/Activity Handbook
- Capacity building of Teachers of Grades I & II
- Independent, periodic and holistic assessment of students
- Formation of Project Management Unit (PMU) at state and district level
- NCF-FS: National Curricular Framework for Foundational Stage (NCF-FS) was released on 20th  October,  2022  providing  a  structure  for  the  syllabus,  training  of  teachers,  Learning Teaching Material (LTM), etc. It is the first ever integrated curriculum framework for children between ages 3-8 in India.
- Vidya  Pravesh:  A  3-months  play  based  'School  Preparation  Module  and  Guidelines'  for Grade I named 'Vidya Pravesh' was launched on 29th July, 2021. The goal of Vidya Pravesh programme is to promote school preparedness in all children coming to Grade- I from diverse backgrounds [Balvatika, Anganwadi Centers (AWCs), at home, private play schools etc.], to ensure a smooth transition of children to Grade-I. This programme is implemented across the country.
- Co-location of Anganwadi Centers (AWCs): As envisaged in NEP 2020, one of the models to  ensure  universal  access  to  high  quality  Early  Childhood  Care  &  Education  consists  of Anganwadis co-located schools having Grade 1. In this regard, the Ministry of Education in collaboration  with  the  Ministry  of  Women  &  Child  Development  has  launched  the 'Guidelines for Co-location of Anganwadi Centres (AWCs) with Schools' on 3 rd September, 2025. As per UDISE+ 2024-25, there are 2,99,546 co-located AWCs in schools having GradeI.
- NCERT has developed and published textbooks in 22 scheduled languages for Grades 1 to 3. The textbooks are available at NCERT's website https://ncert.nic.in.
- The Jaadui Pitara (JP), a set of 53 play-based learning-teaching materials for ages 3-8 was launched on 20th February 2023. Available in 22 Indian languages and English, JP includes toys,  puzzles,  story  cards,  flashcards,  and  teacher  handbooks.  Its  digital  extension,  the  eJaadui Pitara, launched on 10th February 2024, offers multilingual stories, activities, songs in 22  Indian  languages,  and  AI-based  bots-Katha  Sakhi,  Teacher  Tara,  and  Parent  Tara-to support children, teachers, and parents. As envisaged in NEP 2020, these initiatives are an integral part of the foundational stage.
- Primers (launched in March, 2024) have been developed in 121 local languages for FLN in mother  tongues  spoken  by  populations  of  at  least  10,000.  Primers  are  available  at https://ncert.nic.in/primers.php?ln=en.

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