ANANTAPUR: In a landmark initiative, the Andhra Pradesh government organised Mega Parent Teacher Meeting (PTM) 2.0 on Thursday, drawing over 2.3 crore participants across 61,000 schools in the State in a single day.
Spearheaded by HRD Minister Nara Lokesh, the PTM united students, parents, teachers, school management committees, officials, donors, and alumni to bolster the State’s education system.
Held on Guru Purnima, the PTM at the Zilla Parishad High School in Kothacheruvu, Puttaparthi, Sri Sathya Sai district, was attended by Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, who described schools as modern temples of knowledge, and urged collective responsibility to nurture them.
The PTM, the second major initiative under the TDP-led NDA government, marked an unprecedented effort, with Lokesh noting, “Never before has a parent-teacher meeting been conducted across the entire State in one day.”
Now, the Mega PTM 2.0 with over 2.3 crore participants in a single day is set for an entry into Guinness World Records.
Naidu, engaging directly with students, parents, and teachers, shared a personal anecdote about his wife Bhuvaneswari’s dedication to their son Lokesh’s education, ensuring his admission to prestigious institutions like Cambridge and Stanford.
He praised Lokesh, now HRD Minister, for taking the responsibility of shaping the future of Andhra Pradesh’s students.
Naidu emphasised his commitment to elevating government schools to compete with private institutions.
‘No vacancy board in govt school is proof of quality education’
He cited a government school in Nellore displaying ‘No Vacancy’ board as evidence of improved educational standards, attributing it to skilled teachers and systemic reforms. The PTM 2.0 was extended to private schools, following the success of PTM 1.0 across 44,000 government schools last year.
The Talliki Vandanam scheme, benefiting over 40 lakh mothers, supports families in educating all their children, bringing light to their lives, Naidu said. The government allocated Rs 980 crore for provision of high-quality kits consisting of uniform, shoes, belt, and bag, free of political branding, to students of government schools.
LEAP (Learning Excellence in Andhra Pradesh) App enables parents to monitor their children’s attendance, grades, and behaviour, while the Green Passport initiative encourages students to plant saplings in their mother’s name, with progress tracked for three years. Approximately 45 lakh students are participating in this environmental campaign, aligning with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision.
The government has also effected transfer of 67,732 in a transparent manner, and promoted 4,477, besides introducing semester-based textbooks to reduce bag weight, and establishing 9,600 model primary schools with one teacher per class. The Shining Stars programme recognises talented students, ensuring their admission to preferred colleges, he highlighted.
The Chief Minister took a firm stand against the drug menace, condemning the previous regime for turning Andhra Pradesh into a ganja hub, particularly Visakhapatnam Agency. He vowed stringent action, including asset seizures and withholding welfare benefits to offenders, through the ‘Drugs Vaddhu Bro’ campaign to curb substance abuse. Naidu urged students to draw inspiration from great personalities like APJ Abdul Kalam, emphasising that education is the key to eradication of poverty.
At Kothacheruvu, Naidu spent four hours interacting with students and parents, distributing progress cards and counselling them on academic improvement. He inspected classrooms, reviewed holistic progress cards covering attendance, marks, behaviour, and health, and taught an 8th grade Social Science lesson on resource utilisation. He advised students to handle textbooks carefully for reuse, and conserve resources like water and electricity.
Lokesh called upon alumni in prominent positions to contribute to their schools’ development, emphasising teachers’ role in shaping champions. He highlighted value-based education, with spiritual Guru Chaganti Koteswara Rao appointed as an advisor to develop special textbooks and videos.