Uttarakhand launches free PPP coaching

At a time when the Uttarakhand government has decided to launch free coaching for students on public private partnership (PPP) mode, Dr Ranjit Sinha, a doctor-turned IAS officer, has come out with an innovative idea of launching a similar scheme albeit with a difference.

Instead of PPP mode, Sinha, who is the district magistrate of the backward Chamoli district, has chalked out a plan to provide free coaching to students with the help of other top officials of the district.

Sinha has constituted a core team of doctors, engineers and other officials of the district to start coaching classes from Gopeshwar, the district headquarters of Chamoli.

Joining Dr Sinha’s team are district development officer Dr V Shanmugam, an MBBS, Janmeyjay Khanduri, Superintendent of Police and others. “We want to provide free coaching classes as there is no dearth of talent in our backward Chamoli district,” said Dr Sinha. In this regard, a career-counseling and a workshop for students will start from November 3, said Dr Sinha.

Interestingly, Dr Sinha’s idea of free coaching came at a time when the state government is all set to provide free coaching for engineering, medical and other professional courses to the students studying all over the state under the PPP mode.

This ambitious and innovative project under public-private partnership (PPP) will begin from all district headquarters including girl inter-colleges at Gopeshwar and Haldwani. The students of far-flung areas will also get career counseling and coaching free of cost.

Five residential schools under the name of Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Abhinav Vidyalaya will also be set up at Uttarkashi, UdhamSingh Nagar, Rudra Prayag, Chamoli and Bageshwar districts. These schools will provide free residential education to the selected students, a government official said.

These decisions were taken at a recent meeting where Chief Secretary Subhash Kumar reviewed the progress of PPP projects being undertaken in the state.