Parliament Question: School libraries in rural Odisha

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION AND LITERACY RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO- 4195 ANSWERED ON- 01/04/2026 School libraries in rural Odisha 4195 Smt. Sulata Deo: Will the Minister of Education be pleased to state: (a) whether the Ministry proposes to strengthen school libraries in rural Odisha through dedicated grants; and (b) if so, the allocation and implementation mechanism? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION (SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY) (a) & (b): 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. The National Education Policy, 2020 has emphasized the importance of libraries and books by highlighting on various aspects including development of enjoyable and inspirational books, availability and accessibility of books in school/public libraries, strengthening of libraries and building a culture of reading across the country Under Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Samagra Shiksha, State/UT Governments are supported based on annual plans prepared by them based on their requirements and priority and this is reflected in their respective Annual Work Plan and Budget (AWP&B) Proposals which are then appraised and approved by the Project Approval Board (PAB) in the Department of School Education & Literacy in consultation with the State as per the programmatic and financial norms of the scheme, and physical and financial progress of the State for the interventions approved. One of the major interventions for improving quality of education under the Samagra Shiksha scheme includes provision for library and books across all levels of school education. It includes providing grant for libraries in all government schools irrespective of region in State/UT. This grant is used to develop school libraries as learning spaces that nurture life-long readers and seekers of knowledge and promote reading ability through relevant, age-appropriate, diverse and engaging books and other reading material. Under the component ‘strengthening of existing schools’ of Samagra Shiksha, a provision has been made to provide library room in schools where library rooms are not available.The proposal for library room may include the cost for civil work, furniture, almirah, racks, fixing and fittings. Further, the provision for books to be kept in the library are as under: S. N Category of School Library Grant 1 Primary School (Class I to V) ₹ 5,000/- 2 Upper Primary School (Class VI to VII) ₹ 13,000/- 3 Secondary Schools (Classes IX and X) ₹ 15,000/- 4 Senior Secondary Schools only (class XI to XII) ₹ 20,000/- During the financial year 2025–26, an outlay of ₹473.15 crore has been approved under the Library Grant component for Government schools across States and Union Territories. Out of this, ₹42.42 crore has been approved by the Project Approval Board (PAB) for the State of Odisha under the said component. As reported by Govt. of Odisha in UDISE+(2024-25), all government schools in Odisha are equipped with library/Book Bank/Reading Corner facilities. *****