Parliament Question: School infrastructure in Odisha

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION AND LITERACY RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO- 502 ANSWERED ON- 04/02/2026 School infrastructure in Odisha 502 Shri Muzibulla Khan:

Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:

(a) the present status of school infrastructure in Odisha;

(b) number of new schools sanctioned under Samagra Shiksha;

(c) steps taken to improve digital and smart classroom facilities;

(d) funds released for strengthening Government schools; and

(e) measures taken to ensure quality education in remote and tribal districts? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION (SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY)

(a) to (e) Education is in the Concurrent List of the Constitution and majority of the schools come under the purview of the respective State and UT Government. Under Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Samagra Shiksha, State Government is supported based on annual plans prepared by the State based on their requirements and priority. As informed by the State Govt. of Odisha, the present status of school infrastructure is at Annexure.

Under the Samagra Shiksha scheme, 46 Primary Schools, 77 Upper Primary Schools and 245 Secondary Schools have been upgraded to Upper primary schools, Secondary Schools and Higher Secondary schools respectively, from 2018-19 onwards.

To strengthen digital learning and smart classroom facilities, smart classrooms have been provided in 6427 Government Upper Primary Schools, 8679 Government and aided Secondary Schools, 310 Government Higher Secondary Schools and 121 Government Vocational Higher Secondary Schools.

ICT facilities are available in 8679 Government and aided Secondary Schools and 224 KGBV hostels.

37 Government Higher Secondary Schools have 50 seater digital libraries. Digital assessment facilities are available in 980 Secondary Schools, with 20 tablets provided to each school to access digital content in the classroom. 96718 Primary Level teachers have been provided with tablet, and 8044 elementary schools have been equipped with smart TVs.

To ensure quality education in remote and tribal districts, as informed by Govt. of Odisha, multiple academic and administrative measures have been undertaken. Curriculum and learning resource readiness has been ensured through provision of student workbooks for Vidya Pravesh and foundational literacy and numeracy, structured learning aids, student kits, teacher handbooks and academic calendars. Sishu Vatika classes for children aged five to six years have been introduced inall primary schools having Grade I from the academic year 2025-26. A statewide reading promotion campaign has been implemented in schools from Class I to VIII to improve reading skills, with student progress monitored monthly through the Reading Tracker and Literacy Meter up to March 2026.

Capacity building of teachers is being carried out through monthly cluster meetings and the use of Sikhyan Sopan to track student competencies and plan timely interventions. The Learning Enhancement Programme has been implemented in middle schools from Class VI to VIII focusing on English, Odia and Mathematics, while targeted programmes UTKARSH for Class IX and UTKARSH+ for Class X are being implemented to bridge learning gaps in Odia, English, Mathematics and Science.

For tribal students, mother-tongue-based multilingual education is operational in 17 districts covering 1317 schools in 21 tribal languages, supported by 3188 multilingual education teachers An amount of ₹6,083.10 lakh has been approved for strengthening existing Government elementary schools up to Class VIII for construction of additional classrooms, boys’ and girls’ toilets, CWSN toilets, electrification, ramps and handrails. Overall 3235.25 cr. has been approved for 2025-26 for Samagra Shiksha for Odisha based on the demand and plan submitted by Odisha.

*****Annexure ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (e) OF RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 502 ANSWERED ON 04.02.2026 ASKED BY SHRI MUZIBULLA KHAN REGARDING “SCHOOL INFRASTRUCTURE IN ODISHA”.

Total Number of Schools in Odisha 61467 S.No. Component Number of Schools

1. Schools having Building Blocks 61451

2. Schools having Boundary Wall 57522

3. Schools having Toilet 61264

4. Schools having Boys Toilet 59649

5. Schools having Girls Toilet 60582

6. Schools having CWSN Boys Toilet 41573

7. Schools having CWSN Girls toilet 38367

8. Schools having drinking water facility 61467

9. Schools having Library Books available 61318

10. Schools having Play Ground facility 51070

11. Schools having Ramps available 58550

12. Schools having Kitchen Garden available 57398

13. Schools having Kitchen Shed available 55131

14. Schools having Internet available 51490

15. Schools having Functional incinerator in Girls Toilet (Upper 49870 Primary School/Secondary/Higher Secondary School)

16. Schools having Sanitary pad availability (Upper Primary 43221 School/Secondary/Higher Secondary School)

17. Schools having Electricity 59565

18. Schools having handwash points 60297

19. Schools having Furniture available 40141

Source: State Govt. of Odisha