Kerala becomes first state to have completely digital public education

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala has now become the first state in the country to have 100 per cent digital public education. Pinarayi Vijayan, Chief Minister, Government of Kerala, will announce the status soon.

High-technology projects of Rs 493 crore have been allotted for secondary schools while high-technology lab projects worth Rs 300 crore have been allotted for primary schools. All the 1,600 schools of the state are now equipped with 3,74,274 Information technology (IT) equipment including 1,19,055 laptops, 69,944 multimedia projects, 4,578 DSLR Cameras, etc. High-speed broadband internet connectivity has been extended to almost 12,678 schools. Kerala Infrastructure and Technology for Education (KITE) is responsible for implementing these programmes.

K. Anvar Sadath, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), KITE, said that all the equipment has an on-site warranty of five years, which is a first of its kind in the country. They come with insurance coverage and a web-portal. A helpline number has also been activated to address any complaints regarding the equipment. He added that only installation of these devices will not satisfy the purpose of Information and Communication (ICT) enabled learning system.

All these efforts have provided a global experience for the students and teachers with the help of hi-tech classrooms and IT labs. Sadath said that the state has ensured that not even a single student misses out on school education in these tough times.