Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: The State Government is slated to develop 500 Karnataka Public Schools (KPSs) in Karnataka by 2030. The Department of School Education and Literacy and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on August 23 signed an agreement under which the latter will extend a loan of Rs 1,750 crore to the government, while the total budget of the project is Rs 2,500 crore, according to media reports.
The aim is to provide free and quality education from LKG to Class 12 on a single campus at every KPS. Free transport for students, bilingual teaching, computer and AI education, priority for skill development and career guidance, talent development in music, literature and sports, extracurricular activities and continuous monitoring of students’ progress will also be part of the programme.
The plan is also to prepare the students for competitive exams and career guidance from the 6th grade. Special attention will be given to improve the results of 10th and 12th grades.
The agreement was signed in the presence of Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, DCM Dr G Parameshwara, Department of School Education and Literacy Minister Madhu Bangarappa, Deputy Secretary of the Economic Affairs Department Saurabh Singh, ADB director Mio Oka, and Additional Chief Secretary of the State (Department of School Education and Literacy) Dr Rashmi Mahesh.
“This is the first time that ADB is providing such a large amount of financial assistance to the education sector in India. Before announcing this assistance, they reviewed the plan of our KPSs, the steps we have taken to implement it, and our commitment,” said Bangarappa.
Recruitment of teachers He added that bilingual education and recruitment of 15,000 teachers (especially those well-versed in computer science) are part of the agreement. “We have already prepared a detailed project report,” Bangarappa added. Karnataka has already received 15 per cent of the ADB assistance, or Rs 262.5 crore.
The remaining amount will be provided in phases: Rs 358.75 crore in 2026-27, Rs 385 crore in 2027-28, Rs 376.25 crore in 2028-29 and Rs 367.5 crore in 2029-30.
