Four districts from Bihar – Muzaffarpur, Aurangabad, Banka, and Sheikhpura – have ranked among the top five most improved in the field of the education sector, as per the NITI Aayog’s Aspirational District ranking.
“Education is the key to champion the cause of an Aatmanirbhar Bharat. Presenting the top five most improved aspirational districts in the sector of education for the month of October 2021. Congratulation to champions of the change,” NITI Aayog tweeted.
Four out of the five most improved districts are from Bihar. The most improved is Dumka in Jharkhand. Muzaffarpur, Aurangabad, Banka, and Sheikhpura occupy the second, third, fourth, and fifth positions, respectively, in the most improved districts in the education sector. This tracks the progress made in 112 aspirational districts spread across the country.
Aspirational District scheme was launched in January 2018 with an aim to quickly and effectively transform 112 of the most under-developed districts in the country. Under this initiative, rankings are released on a monthly basis, based on the incremental progress made across 49 Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). The KPIs are under socio-economic themes such as Health and Nutrition, Education, Agriculture, and Water Resources, Financial Inclusion & Skill Development, and Infrastructure, among others.
Reacting to the latest ranking, Additional Chief Secretary in Bihar’s education department Sanjay Kumar said: “This is the result of the work undertaken with regards to quality education on the instructions and under the leadership of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.” Kumar said the topmost priority of the education department in Bihar is to ensure that every high school has its own building and infrastructure. “We are accessing the HR issues as to the availability of teachers, especially in the secondary schools, Library books, smart classes, and ICT centres have been put up for effective and quality education in schools,” Kumar was quoted in the Times of India newspaper.
