Rajasthan: Over 60,000 apply in English-medium government schools

NEW DELHI: Over 60,000 students have applied for admission in English-medium Mahatma Gandhi state government schools in Rajasthan this year. A statement from the Rajasthan secondary education department says it has been “overwhelmed” by the number of applications.

The number of available seats in such schools total 18,093. A school in Jaipur has received 1,400 admission applications against just 60 seats of Class 1, said the statement from Rajasthan Secondary Education Department.

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The Congress-led government in Rajasthan had added 168 such schools last year. Considering the high demand, the education department has given permission to hold two batches in schools with proper infrastructure.

The admissions are being finalised through a lottery system in order to give equal opportunity to all aspiring students, stated the education department.

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Rajasthan government schools

Saurabh Swami, director of secondary education, Rajasthan said: "This is only the third year since the Mahatma Gandhi State Government Schools came into operation and have earned the trust of people. There were mere 33 schools at district levels in 2019 that have been increased to over 200 by 2021 and 330 existing government schools are being considered to be transformed as English medium”.

Referring to the quality of education provided in these schools, the education department further said that 3,700 students admitted in Mahatma Gandhi State Government Schools are the children of school staff which displays the faith teachers have in their own institutions.

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According to the statement, these schools were first introduced in 2019 from Classes 1 to 8. The district-level schools that opened in 2019 have this year been upgraded to Class 10. The schools opened in 2020 have been upgraded to Class 9.

“These English medium schools of Rajasthan presently have more than 73,600 students enrolled and with new admission the number is likely to reach above 1 Lakh,” added the statement.

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