Centre committed to ensuring quality school education for all, says PM Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi reaffirmed the Centre’s commitment to providing quality school education to all sections of society, in line with the National Education Policy (NEP).
On Friday, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by PM Modi, approved the establishment of 85 new Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs) and 28 Navodaya Vidyalayas (NVs) in underserved districts under the Navodaya Vidyalaya Scheme.
PM Modi took to X to announce, “Our government has made another significant decision to make school education more accessible. Under this initiative, 85 new Kendriya Vidyalayas will be opened across the country. This will benefit a large number of students and create many new employment opportunities.”
In a separate post, he added, “We are committed to providing school education to every section of society according to the National Education Policy. In this regard, our government has approved 28 new Navodaya Vidyalayas across the country. This will greatly expand residential and quality school education.”
The total estimated cost for establishing the 85 new KVs, along with the expansion of one existing KV, is around Rs 5,872.08 crore over eight years from 2025 to 2026. This includes Rs 2,862.71 crore for capital expenditure and Rs 3,009.37 crore for operational costs.
Currently, there are 1,256 functional Kendriya Vidyalayas, including three overseas (in Moscow, Kathmandu, and Tehran), serving approximately 13.56 lakh students. The addition of 85 new KVs will benefit about 82,560 more students.
In alignment with the NEP 2020, many Kendriya Vidyalayas have been designated as PM Shri Schools, showcasing the policy’s implementation as model institutions.
The Ministry of Education highlighted the growing demand for KV admissions and noted the consistent success of KV students in CBSE exams, outperforming other educational systems.
For the 28 new NVs, the government has allocated Rs 2,359.82 crore over five years (2024-25 to 2028-29), with Rs 1,944.19 crore for capital expenditure and Rs 415.63 crore for operational costs.
The NVs are fully residential, co-educational institutions offering high-quality education for students in classes VI to XII, primarily aimed at gifted children from rural areas, regardless of their family’s financial background. Admissions are based on a Selection Test, with approximately 49,640 students enrolling in Class VI annually.
Currently, there are 661 sanctioned NVs across the country, including second NVs in 20 districts with high concentrations of SC/ST populations and three special NVs. Of these, 653 NVs are operational.
