GUNTUR: Reiterating his stand on improving the quality of education, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu said the government is giving top priority to technical education and 15 medical colleges will come up in Amaravati region.Addressing the Teachers’ Day meeting at CK Convention at Mangalagiri on Wednesday, Naidu said the Centre was not supporting development in the State.
Stating that good education is the foundation for development, he spoke about the contribution of teachers in his life. Recalling former President Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, a great philosopher and statesman, Naidu said that teachers should take him as an inspiration. He invited the teachers to participate in developmental programmes so as to make the State a knowledge hub.
“The dropout rate in schools has considerably decreased with a rise in pass percentages,” Naidu said. Arrangements are in place for construction of virtual classrooms in 5,000 to 6,000 schools of Andhra Pradesh, he added.
The chief minister said `25,000 crore has been allocated for development of education in the State despite `16,000 crore of deficit budgets. More than 76 lakh students are studying in over 63,000 educational institutions in the State and, keeping this in view, infrastructure is being rapidly developed, he added.
Defending the need for loans for development of Amaravati, he said the government could not sit idle expecting funds from the Centre.
On the occasion, he felicitated ace shuttler PV Sindhu and wished her more success in the coming years. He also honoured 188 teachers who were selected as ‘best teachers’. Human Resources Minister Ganta Srinivasa Rao, who was also present on the occasion, asked the teachers to give their best services so that the students from the State can be recognised throughout the country.
Ministers P Pulla Rao and N Anand Babu, Zilla Parishad chairperson Sk Jonny Moon, MLCs AS Ramakrishna and Srinivasula Nayudu, former minister R Kishore Babu, Women’s Commission chairperson N Rajakumari and others were present.