Patna: Bihar Education Department on Tuesday, February 18, informed that a total of 836 schools of the state have been selected under the flagship Prime Minister School for Rising India (PM SHRI), an initiative of the Union Government.
A total of 836 higher secondary schools selected under the scheme will now have classes from class 6th to 12th from the academic session 2025-26. The selected schools were earlier having classes for class 9th to 12th only.
In a letter issued on Monday, the department has informed that the nearby middle schools will be merged with the selected schools. The schools after the merger will be considered as a single academic and administrative unit as mandated under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
The department has further clarified that if headmasters with prescribed pay are found to be working in the middle schools set to be merged, they will be transferred in some other schools.
Students of grade one to five will however remain in the same schools and it will function as a separate primary school, said the order issued by the department.
The students of the middle schools proposed to be merge with the higher secondary schools will continue to be taught by the same teachers and will attended by teachers of class 9th to 12th in case of any shortage of tutors.
Notably the state currently has a total of 511 PM SHRI schools being operated under 384 blocks. This includes a total of 284 upper primary schools, 85 higher secondary schools, 58 secondary schools and others.
A flagship initiative of the Union Government, PM SHRI scheme was approved by the government in September 2022. The scheme aims to upgrade and strengthen more than 14500 selected schools across the country earlier managed by the local bodies, state government and the central government.
The PM SHRI schools will showcase the implementation of the National Education Policy 2020 and emerge as exemplar schools over a period of time, inspiring the other schools in the nearby areas. The scheme aims to provide quality education in a joyful and inclusive environment to the students.
