Itanagar, Sep 10: Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Thursday felicitated 30 State-level meritorious students from Classes III to XII under the Golden Jubilee Meritorious Students Awards for the academic session 2024-25 and urged the young achievers to remain disciplined, focused and committed to excellence.
Addressing the award ceremony here in the presence of Education Minister PD Sona, Advisor to Education Minister Mutchu Mithi, senior officials, teachers, students and parents, Khandu congratulated the awardees and acknowledged the contribution of parents, families, teachers and friends to their achievements.
Around 840 students have received the award at various district levels. Instituted in 2022 to commemorate 50 years since the State was named Arunachal Pradesh in 1972, the award was implemented from the academic year 2023-24. The 2024-25 edition is the second State-level ceremony, while the 2025-26 edition is scheduled to be held during the current year.
Speaking on education reforms, Khandu said the State Government was working to improve the quality and effectiveness of government schools through implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and Mission Shikshit Arunachal, with the target of achieving its objectives by 2029.
He said a task force was constituted for NEP implementation, followed by consultations with community-based organisations and other stakeholders. District-level consultations were also conducted by senior Education Department officials, leading to the preparation of a comprehensive roadmap.
The Chief Minister said the Government was rationalising schools and strengthening the Inter-Village (IV) school model, with greater focus on infrastructure and availability of teachers, particularly subject teachers. He said substantial recruitment of subject teachers through the Arunachal Pradesh Public Service Commission had already been undertaken.
Khandu also highlighted the encouraging increase in enrolment in government schools, describing the trend as significant at a time when declining enrolment in government schools remains a challenge across the country.
Urging students to pursue holistic development, he stressed the importance of discipline, respect for parents, elders and teachers, academic excellence and physical fitness. He also emphasised the importance of sports alongside academics and noted that playgrounds had been provided in government schools across the State.
The Chief Minister encouraged students to explore diverse career opportunities beyond government jobs, including the private sector, entrepreneurship, startups and emerging fields. He referred to the APSSB, APPSC, UPSC and multinational companies as avenues for professional growth.
Highlighting initiatives to encourage Arunachali youth to join the Armed Forces as officers, Khandu said the State's first Sainik School had been established at Pasighat in collaboration with the Government of India, while the second Sainik School is being established at Tawang under the PPP mode.
He said the Government was also working with the Army to establish a structured coaching mechanism to provide specialised preparation for examinations such as NDA and CDS. The initiative is expected to create opportunities for Arunachal's youth to pursue careers as officers in the Army, Navy, Air Force and Central Armed Police Forces.
Khandu further highlighted the State's efforts to provide global exposure to students through scholarships for those securing admission to universities ranked among the world's top 150 under QS rankings. He said around 13-14 Arunachali students had benefited from the initiative this year.
Recalling his own educational journey, Khandu said he was a product of the government school system and therefore understood the challenges and ecosystem of government schools. He recalled studying at Government Gompa Middle School in Tawang and being part of its first batch after the institution was upgraded to a secondary school.