Bengaluru: Even as the Karnataka government is upgrading around 700 schools to KPS Magnet schools across the state and has denied implementing the National Education Policy (NEP) in any school, 585 government schools are already in the process of upgrading to PM Shri schools phase-wise in the state. What is even more interesting is that despite the State Government rejecting the NEP orally and forming a committee headed by Prof Sukhadeo Thorat to write a detailed report, NEP is put into practice in all the PM Shri schools.
While it was announced in the 2018-19 Union Budget, the implementation in Karnataka started in 2022. In total, there are 14,500 government schools across India to be upgraded to PM-Shri. Until December 2024, only 478 schools in the state were in the list for upgradation. Recently, another 107 schools were added to the list.
Several states, including Tamil Nadu, Kerala and West Bengal opposed to implementing it where as Karnataka signed an MoU to implement the same. As of late 2025, Rs 546 crore has been approved of which around Rs 230.5 crore has been released by the Centre.
Since this scheme functions on a 60:40 Central-State funding share, primary schools receive Rs 30 to 35 lakh and secondary schools up to Rs 1.3 crore. The schools for the same are selected through transparent challenge method. Various government schools with good strength of students, pass percentage and with Unified District Information System for Education Code (UDISE) Code can apply online for upgradation and funds to develop the school infrastructure and ultimately upgrade to PM Shri School. There is a competition among schools for the selection.
In Karnataka, the upgradation started in 2022 and it is likely to go on till 2027.
Around 25 schools in Bengaluru North, South and Rural are being planned for upgradation to PM Shri, including nine schools in Bengaluru Rural, six schools in Bengaluru North and 10 in Bengaluru South.
Meanwhile, a government school teacher in lower primary school in Belagavi, said, "Government schools that apply for upgradation as PM Shri are allowed to get funds up to Rs 2 crore phase wise for their development. In Karnataka, one of the best PM Shri School is located in Kunnala in Ramdurg in Belagavi district. The teachers in this school have utilised the funds systematically that every classroom has a smart board, a computer lab, science lab, a hi-tech kitchen and all the other equipments required for school. However, when you look at other schools that have also been upgraded to PM Shri, there are no such facilities. Either the money has not been utilised properly by teachers or it hasn't reached them."
Dr Niranjan Aradhya VP, Developmental Educationist, said, "There is no doubt that NEP is being implemented in all the schools and not just PM Shri Schools. The funds that the Centre is providing are supposed to be provided for the schools under Samagra Shikshana Karnataka (SSK). But here is the fix as more funds are being provided under the PM Shri to State Government schools, the SSK programme will be automatically derailed. Even the PM Shri scheme is not implemented properly with those funds provided by the Centre."
