School Education Deptt plans school bus service for remote areas to curb dropouts
Srinagar, Nov 24: The School Education Department is considering the introduction of dedicated school buses for institutions located in remote and far-flung areas, a move expected to significantly improve access to education and reduce dropout rates in government schools.
According to official documents, the department has projected its requirement and will submit a formal proposal to the Department of School Education and Literacy (DSEL), Ministry of Education, Government of India.
“The projection will be submitted to DSEL, GoI, for the revamped Samagra Shiksha from 2026 onwards, under which funding for school buses for remote schools has also been proposed,” the documents state.
The initiative recently received appreciation from J&K Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo during a review meeting held last month. He also reviewed key Human Resource Management issues and instructed the department to list priority concerns along with the progress achieved so far. “The progress will be discussed and assessed in the next meeting,” the document notes.
During the meeting, the Chief Secretary emphasised that all departmental initiatives must aim to raise educational standards, strengthen digital learning, ensure effective teacher performance monitoring, and fast-track infrastructure completion.
He directed each directorate and wing of the department to prepare activity-wise action plans with clear timelines, funding sources and expected outcomes.
Reviewing digital content creation, the Chief Secretary observed that the number of educational videos produced so far was inadequate. He directed that the target of preparing 60,000 educational videos by March 2026—covering major subjects and languages—must be achieved. The department was also asked to collaborate with NCERT to develop high-quality multilingual content, including remedial lessons for students through BOSAG-N.
To widen access, the department has been instructed to develop a centralised digital library integrating videos, text and image-based educational content into the Study Buddy application, ensuring all material is freely accessible in English and other languages.
On teacher analytics, the Chief Secretary stressed the need for data-driven performance monitoring.
“Every teacher’s performance should be analysed within the MIS framework,” he said, adding that performance parameters must be linked to learning outcomes, classroom delivery and content management. He called for the creation of a dedicated teacher analytics dashboard to help identify gaps and guide targeted interventions.
