Digital libraries helping students prepare for boards, competitive exams

Sai Sannit, a young cancer survivor from Ballari district, used a gram panchayat library-turned digital learning centre to continue his studies when he could not attend school, thanks to an initiative by some of the district collectors across Karnataka and Maharashtra of converting unused libraries in remote areas into digital learning hubs, creches and holiday camps, all to attract children to enhance learning and greater access to curriculum.

The initiative, which started with the aim to provide structured revision support to secondary school students ahead of their board examinations while also giving access to high-tech learning to students appearing for competitive exams, has now extended to even foundational literacy to ensure learning in rural and remote districts starts early.

Since 2025, Ballari Zilla Panchayat in Karnataka has been running Gram Panchayat libraries as extended evening and holiday classrooms across 100 GP libraries in the district under the Aspirational Blocks Programme.


These libraries host special digital classes in science, mathematics and english alongside structured summer-camp STEM activities while the summer camps focus on foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN) for all age groups.

Following this initiative which drew over 20,000 students across 100 participating libraries, Ballari district’s Class X (SSLC) pass percentage rose from 70% last academic year to 92% in this year's March exam, Md Haris Sumair, CEO, Zilla Panchayat, Ballari, Karnataka said.

The Nandurbar district in Maharashtra is leading the state by refurbishing dead assets in villages into modern libraries and has so far set up 125 such libraries by incentivizing gram panchayats to set up the required infrastructure while the state pitched in with books, computers and other infrastructure.

The district will soon hold a crowd sourcing campaign to nudge people to adopt libraries, donate books, mentor students and even hold skill building classes going forward, said Dr Mittali Sethi, district collector, Nandurbar.

Pratham’s Second Chance programme in the district helped 500 women to clear Class X exam and this year we plan to take it up to 1000 women this year, Sethi said.

Buoyed by the success, the Ballari district in Karnataka is constructing 51 new digital library-cum-creche buildings at an estimated cost of Rs 50 lakh each, funded by the Karnataka Mining Environment Restoration Corporation (KMERC).

Similar initiatives are picking up in other parts of Maharashtra and Karnataka and Rajasthan with the Centre nudging all states to replicate the model in their districts which lack in education outcomes due to multiple reasons.

However, the challenge being faced is on how to monitor enrollments and to sustain the relevance and utility of these refurbished libraries in bridging the rural-urban learning gap through digital convergence.

NITI Aayog, the nodal institution to run the Aspirational District Programme (ADP) and Aspirational Block Programme, said the initiative is supported by attendance monitoring and convergence between the education department and panchayat raj institutions with focus on outcomes. “The initiative is helping strengthen academic preparedness, build student confidence and bridge the rural-urban learning gap through digital convergence,” it said.