Will ease land norms to set up more KVs: Govt

As per the new decision, the states would now need to submit a 6-acre land plan instead of the existing 10- acre stipulation to establish new Central Schools in their respective areas.

According to sources, HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar has agreed in principle to change the norm after realising that demands from states for opening of new Central schools were on the rise, but due to non-availability of required land, new KVs couldn’t be opened.

“If the existing norm of 10-acre land is continued, it would be very tough for the HRD ministry to give final approval for opening new schools,” a source said. The ministry has received proposals on opening 164 new central schools. However, the states have not been able to meet the 10-acre criteria, which in turn delayed approvals.

“The final decision in this regard would be taken at Kendriya Vidyalaya board meeting, which is likely to be held in the month of September. The ministry is also mulling vertical growth in KV buildings, while the remaining norms, namely that the earmarked land should have road connectivity, power supply, etc would remain the same,” the source said.

Commenting on the proposals for new Kendriya Vidyalayas, the source said, “The ministry is analysing each proposal as some of the plans sent by states are not feasible.  Prior to considering a proposal, we have to examine the local aspects as to what would be the strength, would it meet the purpose of providing quality education to needy, etc.”

Among the states that have submitted their plans for the new schools, Madhya Pradesh tops the list seeking approvals to set up 19 new KVs, followed by Chhattisgarh which has submitted a proposal to open 14 new KVs, including in Maoist-infested districts like Sukma and Kobra.

Karnataka wants to open 13 new Central schools, Kerala has sought permission to open 12 new KVs, the poll-bound Uttar Pradesh has submitted proposal for 11 new KVs and Gujarat, home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, wants nine more such schools.

Bengal has sought the Centre’s nod to open two new KVs – one in New Cooch Behar and other in New Jalpaiguri, while Bihar has submitted its proposal for setting up a new central school in Narkatiaganj and Jharkhand wants to open eight such schools.

The erstwhile UPA government had approved setting up of 54 new KVs during the last lap of their tenure. The Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan is one of the largest school chains in world with 1,094 schools in India and three abroad. 

A total of 1,209,138 students (as on September 30, 2015) and 56,445 employees were on the rolls (as on September 1, 2013).