Lighting the lamp at the Children’s Day science fair at A.B. Jatti school, Tikota, Vijayapura district. Photo: Minister M.B. Patil’s media team
Vijayapura: Science fairs are a good platform for rural children to develop a scientific outlook and understand scientific concepts through practice, and they help build a spirit of research, creativity and scientific thinking, School Education and Literacy Minister Madhu Bangarappa said on Saturday.
He inaugurated the children’s science fair at the A.B. Jatti school premises in Tikota on Children’s Day. The fair was organised by the Rural Block Education Officer’s office with the BLDE institution and the Agastya Foundation.
The state government plans to develop government schools at a cost of about ₹4,500 crore, Bangarappa said. Fourteen years of schooling, from LKG to PUC, will be offered under one roof along with a free bus facility, he said.
The government has also given priority to the nutrition of government school children, he said. About 45 lakh children in the state get eggs along with the midday meal, and children who do not eat eggs are given bananas. He praised the Azim Premji Foundation for supporting the ₹1,991 crore programme.
Karnataka Public Schools are planned to offer computer education from Class 1, well-equipped science laboratories, an introduction to artificial intelligence from Class 3 and skill development training from Class 6, to prepare children for future challenges, he said.
Government schools have qualified and experienced teachers, and students should make good use of the facilities, study diligently, respect their parents and face life’s challenges with courage, Bangarappa said. He recalled his father, former Chief Minister late S. Bangarappa, saying the one-rupee incentive scheme he introduced to bring poor children to school had inspired the development of education. He called on industrialists in all districts to support government schools under their corporate social responsibility funds.
Large and Medium Industries and Infrastructure Development Minister and district in-charge Dr M.B. Patil said priority has been given to the comprehensive development of government schools in the Babaleshwar constituency so that children of poor farmers and daily wage workers also get quality education. Corporate social responsibility funds of private companies and help from donors are being used for school development, and toys and play equipment are being supplied to Anganwadi centres, he said.
Allamaprabhu Mahaswamiji of Nagnur Rudrakshi Matha said students of the region should become scientists and technologists and contribute to the country’s development, and praised the ministers’ care for government schools. He said Vijayapura district should aim to top the state in the SSLC examination, with students, teachers and parents working together.
Students of various schools showed models at the fair, according to a report shared by the minister’s media team. They included a heat recovery system, a soil moisture detection machine, an electric tractor, smart irrigation, rainwater harvesting, an automatic fire-extinguishing machine and a landslide early-warning system.
Nagthan MLA Vitthal Katakadhond, Additional Commissioner of School Education (Dharwad) Dr Eshwar Ullagaddi, Deputy Commissioner Dr Anand K., Superintendent of Police Lakshman Nimbargi, Manjunath Guledagudda, block education officers, the school’s headmaster and teachers were among those present.
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