Government to facilitate school dropouts' return to education: Smriti Irani

MUMBAI: Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani today said the government will roll out a programme by this year-end wherein school drop-outs who were forced to take up a job or those who opt to exit education due to financial worries, will be facilitated back into studies up to PhD level.

"When it comes to specialisation (in education), women, tribal children, children from scheduled castes, other backward castes are not economically empowered to possibly study further and many of them drop out because they need to go and get themselves a job...I left education because I didn't have money," Irani said.

She was addressing students at Vivekanand Education Society here on the sidelines of launching a "share a tulsi programme" prodding students to pro-actively contribute to the welfare of the society.

The minister said that a "Ishan Vikas" programme has been launched for students who have the caliber to become researchers and scientists and these students will be made to visit "top notch" technical institutions of India.

"Through Ishan Vikas programme what we are trying to do is in standard 9 and 11 we are choosing students who have the capacity to one day become researchers, scientists... Two batches in summer and one batch in winter...close to around 2200 students will visit all IITs and IIMs and other technical institutions that are top notch in this country... They will get orientation there," she said.

The actor turned politician said that by December, the government will roll out a programme where children who have left education for work will be facilitated back to studies up to the PHD level.

"My endeavour is that by December we will roll out a plan where if you want to exit the education system at the eighth standard and compelled to work, we will facilitate your coming back to education and we are making that framework of equivalence for your degree and vocation up to PHD level. This will help a lot of people," she said.