Odisha govt issues guidelines for special category schools

The Odisha govenrment today issued guidelines to conduct regular Parent-Teachers meetings in all schools run by the ST, SC Development, Minorities and Backward Class Welfare department.
The department's minister Ramesh Chandra Majhi also said today that the state govenrment has decided to construct 95 hostels at an expenditure of Rs 88 crore in tribal dominated Kalahandi-Bolangir-Koraput districts.
Majhi said while 60 hostels will house scheduled tribe students, the remaining 35 hostels will be be meant for Dalit students. The construction of these hostels will start very soon, the minister said.
Meanwhile, the department secretary today issued guidelines to conduct regular Parent-Teachers meeting in the respective schools across the state. The commissioner-cum- Secretary of SC & ST Development Department S Kumar wrote letters to all the district collectors in this regard.

In the letter, Kumar asked district collectors to ensure that at least one such meeting be held in schools run by the SC & ST department. He said it should preferably be held on last Saturday every two months.
Besides teachers, students, parents, local MLA should also remain present in the meeting, the guideline said.
Stating that safety and security of students should be focus of the meeting, the guideline said that the issues like scholarship schemes, skill development programmes and others should be discussed.
The department presently runs 1,670 residential educational institutes across the state, where more than 5.4 lakh SC & ST students receive education with the facility of free boarding.