Expect more Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas in Budget 2018, says Prakash Javadekar

New Delhi: The number of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs) will see an increase in the 2018-19 fiscal and a provision will be made in the upcoming Budget, Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar said. [caption id=“attachment_3762899” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Prakash Javadekar. PTI[/caption] The Union minister said more announcements will be made in the Budget 2018 with an aim to address the education divide in parts of the country. “The Modi government’s effort is expansion of quality education. … We have granted 65 Navodaya Vidyalayas (for this year) and in the budget 2018, it will increase further,” Javadekar told reporters here, informing that these Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs) will be opened in new districts. JNVs are being set up under the central scheme since 1986 to bring out the best of the rural talent. So far, JNVs are established in more than 638 districts across the country. For the 2017-18 fiscal, Rs 2,700 crore budget allocation was provided for JNVs, which are run by an autonomous organisation called the Navodaya Vidyalayas Samiti (NVS). Stating that the government wants to improve access to quality education, Javadekar said it is because “we have found out that in parts of the country there is either digital or education divide.” For instance, there are maximum colleges in Bengaluru, Karnataka and also in Tamil Nadu, but less in states like Jharkhand and Bihar. “Expect something good in the budget also because we want to expand quality education in all corners of the nation,” Javadekar said. For the current fiscal, Rs 46,356.25 crore budget allocation was made for the Human Resources Development Ministry. For full coverage of Union Budget 2017 click here.