A+ rating, Rs 1.5 crore in bank: Gujarat govt lays down conditions for grant-in-aid schools to avail funding for infra development

According to the Government Resolution (GR) notified on August 8, laying down several conditions for schools to be eligible under this scheme for the one-time financial assistance, a board “as per the approved design stating ‘With the support of the State Government — Under Mission Schools of Excellence’ has to be installed on the school building in a “clearly visible manner”.
Besides, the average result of the school in the last three years of Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board examinations should be 75 per cent for non-tribal areas and 65 per cent in tribal areas. In addition, Gunotsav result in urban area has to be A+ grade (five star) in one of the last three academic years and A grade in the last two years, according to the GR. In rural areas, it should have had an A grade (two star) or above grading in one of the last three academic years, the GR stated. Such schools should have recorded average attendance of 80% or more in the last academic year, according to the GR.
For assessment of government schools and its students, Gunotsav was launched by the then Chief Minister Narendra Modi in 2009 in Gujarat. This was redesigned as Gunotsav 2.0 by the education department in 2019-20.

The duration of the scheme for schools selected under Mission Schools of Excellence 2.0 for financial assistance for building classrooms and major repair works will be five years — 2025-26 to 2029-30. This amount is in addition to salaries and per student assistance already given to nearly 5,100 grant-in-aid secondary and higher secondary schools in Gujarat.

“After due consideration, it is decided to provide financial assistance to the aided schools affiliated to Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board (GSHSEB) under the Mission Schools of Excellence 2.0 with certain conditions. This is a major decision taken in the last several years that will impact secondary education in the long run,” Education Minister Kuber Dindor told The Indian Express.

Stressing on the need for additional financial assistance, the GR states that since “a large number of students study in the state’s aided secondary and higher secondary schools, which is likely to increase significantly in the coming time… Therefore, the issue of providing financial assistance to strengthen the infrastructure facilities of aided secondary and higher secondary schools like government schools was under active consideration of the government.”

Further, the grant-in-aid schools must have the value of movable property or bank balance or FD or investment in the institution or Trust to be at least Rs 1.50 crore in the municipal areas, Rs 1 crore in municipality areas, and Rs 50 lakh in rural areas. The schools will be required to submit a certificate from a registered chartered accountant regarding the financial viability.

While priority will be given to science stream schools, girls’ schools and schools with the maximum number of students, the schools to be recognised by the GSHSEB must have a school building owned by the trust. If the school has classes IX and X, the total number of students should be at least 50. For schools with classes IX to XII, the total number of students should be at least 100.

Under the scheme, the state government will provide 80% of the cost of the infrastructure facilities to the schools eligible as per the conditions in the ratio of 80:20 with 20% of the amount to be borne by the governing body of the school concerned. The school management body will have to conduct a tender process as per the prevailing government rules and assign the work only to the qualified contractor.

Schools desirous of availing the financial assistance will have to submit a proposal in the prescribed format to the District Education Officer (DEO) concerned by September 30 of that year at the latest.

The proposals received at the district level will be scrutinised by the seven-member committee to be headed by the district collector and approved proposals shall be sent to the state education office with a clear opinion on the order of priority by October 31 of that year at the latest.
The other members of the committee to be constituted especially for the purpose will have district education officer as the member secretary and District Development Officer, District Primary Education Officer, Executive Engineer, Roads and Buildings (State), seniormost education inspector of the District Education Officer’s and District Project Engineer, Samagra Shiksha, as the members.

“The need for infrastructure facilities keeping in mind the number of students, evidence of availability of land owned by the management in the school complex, school management’s undertaking to pay its contribution, structural stability certificate in cases where structural facilities are to be constructed in an existing building, and certificate from the school governing body that the works approved under this scheme do not overlap with the works of any other scheme,” are some of the conditions the seven member committee will verify, according to the government notification.

The proposals received from the district level will have to be verified by the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan office in Gandhinagar and sent to the Education Department. The final decision in this regard is to be taken by the state government, the GR stated.