Parliament Question: Digital Divide and Quality of Education in Government Schools

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION AND LITERACY LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. – 19 ANSWERED ON 20/07/2026 Digital Divide and Quality of Education in Government Schools *19. Shri Manoj Kumar: Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state: (a) whether the Government has conducted any assessment of the digital divide and quality of education in government schools in Sasaram Lok Sabha Constituency (Bihar), particularly in rural and backward areas; (b) if so, the details thereof including the availability of smart classrooms, internet connectivity and trained teachers for digital learning; (c) whether the Government proposes to allocate special funds under schemes such as Samagra Shiksha to improve digital infrastructure and learning outcomes in the said region and if so, the details thereof; and (d) the timeline by which all Government schools in Sasaram are expected to be equipped with basic digital and educational infrastructure? ANSWER MINISTER OF EDUCATION (SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN) (a) to (d): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House. ****STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (A) TO (D) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 19 ANSWERED ON 20.07.2026 ASKED BY HON’BLE MP SHRI MANOJ KUMAR REGARDING “DIGITAL DIVIDE AND QUALITY OF EDUCATION IN GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS” (a) & (b): The subject ‘Education’ is in List-III (Concurrent List) of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of India and majority of the schools are under the administrative control of the respective State Government / UT Administration. Therefore, the responsibility for providing quality school education, including development of digital infrastructure in Government schools, rests primarily with the respective State Government and Union Territory Administration. As per information received from the State Government of Bihar, details of availability of digital infrastructure in Sasaram Lok Sabha Constituency are as under: - Elementary Secondary Total School School Total Number of Schools 828 255 1083 Smart Classrooms 118 163 281 ICT Labs 37 199 236 As per information received from the State Government of Bihar, 404 Trained Teachers/ Computer Teachers and 236 ICT Lab Instructors are available in schools of Sasaram Lok Sabha Constituency. As per information received from the State Government of Bihar, details of availability of internet facility in schools of Sasaram Lok Sabha Constituency are as under: - Primary Elementary Secondary Total Total Number of Schools 1051 828 255 2134 Number of Schools with internet 990 785 242 2017 facility (c) & (d): Under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme Samagra Shiksha, financial assistance is provided to States/UTs for various interventions including digital infrastructure. Annual Work Plan and Budget (AWP&B) is prepared for the States/UTs including Bihar based on their requirements and priorities. AWP&B is then appraised/approved by the Project Approval Board (PAB) as per the programmatic and financial norms of the scheme and availability of budgetary resources. Under the scheme lump sum funds are released to the States/UTs and further distribution of funds component-wise and district-wise is done by the respective States/UTs including Bihar.During the financial year 2025–26, with a view to improve availability of ICT Laboratories, Smart Classrooms, and subject-specific laboratories, an amount of ₹2400.11 Crore was approved under Samagra Shiksha, for the State of Bihar for the establishment of 3478 Physics Laboratories, 3508 Chemistry Laboratories, 3545 Biology Laboratories, 4044 Integrated Mathematics with Science Laboratories, 3478 Physics Lab Equipment, 3508 Chemistry Lab Equipment, and 3478 Biology Lab Equipment, 1459 ICT Labs and 6,113 Smart Classrooms. For the financial year 2026–27, for the State of Bihar, AWP&B for ₹10,376.98 Crore has been approved by the PAB under Samagra Shiksha, out of which ₹122.73 Crore has been approved under the ‘ICT and Digital Initiatives’. As informed by the State Government of Bihar, proposed allocation of funds to improve digital infrastructure and learning outcomes in Sasaram Lok Sabha constituency, is as under: - S. Description Number Unit Cost Total Amount No. (Rs. in Crore). (Rs. In Crore) 1. Smart 92 0.024 2.20 Classrooms 2. ICT Lab 56 0.064 3.58 Government has taken a number of steps for promoting digital learning and improving the quality of school education, which includes the following: - a) Under PM eVidya, Bihar has been allotted five dedicated DTH TV channels (BR PM eVIDYA 63–67) to provide curriculum-based educational content for school students. b) Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing (DIKSHA), the national digital platform for school education, provides QR-coded digital textbooks, e-content and virtual laboratories to all States/UTs including Bihar. c) e-Jaadui Pitara designed for teachers and parents of children aged 3-8 offers engaging learning resources and AI-powered assistance to parents and teachers through three chat bots Katha Sakhi, Teacher Tara and Parent Tara. ****