CUTTACK: The goal of Viksit Odisha by 2036 and Viksit Bharat by 2047 can be achieved only when students study in their mother tongue, and Kendriya Vidyalayas will take a leading role in this direction, said Union Education minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Saturday.
Laying the foundation stone for the second campus of Kendriya Vidyalaya-2 at Nuapada, Pradhan stressed that Odia children will be world champions if they study in their mother tongue Odia.
“The construction of the second campus of Kendriya Vidyalaya-2 was delayed due to non-cooperation of the previous BJD government. The BJP government has taken its work forward,” Pradhan said.
The new building will be constructed at a cost of Rs 40 crore within the next two years. “Facilities will be provided for teaching of students from nursery to Class XII. The strength of students will be increased from 400 to 1,000, and classrooms and ancillary infrastructure will be made to suit their needs,” he said.
Later, attending the 175th annual prize-giving ceremony of Ravenshaw Collegiate School, Pradhan said the institution is a factory for creating leadership. “This is not just an old high school for Odias but a pilgrimage site as it does not build people but leaders. This school has nurtured Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and Utkal Gourab Madhusudan Das, who have enhanced the glory of our nation,” the Union minister said.
The minister also visited the Science Fair that was being organised on the premises of Ravenshaw Collegiate School on the occasion of ‘National Space Day’, and lauded the students for various projects displayed by them. He presented awards to the meritorious students on the occasion and launched the website of the old students’ association. The institution honoured him with the ‘Shiksha Jyoti Samman’.
Among others, Cuttack MP Bhartruhari Mahtab, Dhenkanal MP Rudra Narayan Pani, Barabati-Cuttack MLA Sofia Firdous and eminent Odishi vocalist Shyamamani Devi were present.