Announcing the Union Budget 2022, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that students of Classes I to XII will soon have access to 200 TV channels where they will be provided supplementary education in regional languages as well. "Due to the pandemic induced closure of schools, the children, particularly in the rural areas and those from SC, ST and other weaker sections, have lost almost two years of formal education. Mostly, these are children in government schools," the FM said.
Sitharaman added, "We recognise the need to impart supplementary teaching and to build resilient mechanisms for education delivery. For this purpose, the One Class, One TV channel — a programme of PM e-VIDYA — will be expanded from 12 to 200 TV channels. This will enable all states to provide supplementary education in regional languages for Classes I to XII."
High-quality e-content will be developed for delivery via the internet, TV and radio, said the FM. "A competitive mechanism for the development of quality e-content by the teachers will be set up to empower and equip them with digital tools of teaching and facilitate better learning outcomes," she added while presenting her fourth budget.
FM Sitharaman began her budget speech this year by expressing empathy for those who suffered during the pandemic but assured that India is on a revival path and the country's growth is estimated to be at 9.2 per cent, the highest among all large economies, claimed the Finance Minister.
FM Sitharaman said that India is now in a strong position to withstand challenges. "The Modi government has focused on the empowerment of citizens since 2014," said Sitharaman. "We are in the midst of the Omicron wave, the speed of our vaccination campaign has helped greatly. I am confident that ‘Sabka Prayaas’, we'll continue with strong growth," she added.
