Gandhinagar: Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel chaired a meeting of the State Cabinet today in Gandhinagar. Providing details of the key decisions made during the meeting, Spokesperson Minister Rushikesh Patel announced that the ‘Shala Praveshotsav’ program for the academic year 2025–26 will be held across Gujarat from June 26 to 28, 2025.

School entrance programs will be conducted in all government primary, government-aided secondary and higher secondary schools, as well as in Gyanshakti Residential Schools and Raksha Shakti Schools throughout the state. Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel will participate in the program in Mahisagar district on June 26, Gandhinagar on June 27, and Kutch district on June 28. In addition, around 400 senior officials and office bearers, including ministers from across the state, will take part in the program.

Providing further details, the minister highlighted, “as a result of the successful implementation of the School Entrance Festival, the dropout rate among students has significantly reduced. The dropout rate, which stood at 20.50% in Std 1–5 and 37.22% in Std 1–8 during 2001–02, has come down to 1.07% in Std 1–5 and 2.42% in Std 1–8 in the academic year 2023–24.” This achievement reflects the success of the initiative in increasing enrollment and curbing dropouts in primary education over the past two decades. This year, more focus will be given to secondary and higher secondary education to continue reducing dropout rates, the minister added.

He further stated that during this year’s School Entrance Festival, admissions will be conducted for children in Anganwadi and Balvatika, along with admissions to Std 1, Std 9, and Std 11. A detailed visit schedule for dignitaries and officials has been prepared for the program.

This year, one primary and two secondary or higher secondary schools have been allotted to each dignitary participating in the festival each day. Where sufficient secondary or higher secondary schools are unavailable, Gyanshakti Residential Schools and Raksha Shakti Schools in the same taluka will be included based on geography. Considering the Rath Yatra and Kutch New Year festivities, the festival will be celebrated on June 26 and 28 in areas falling on the Rath Yatra route and in the Kutch district.

Additionally, in the primary education sector, to ensure the identification, tracking, and enrollment of every eligible child for Std 1 (since 2019–20) and Balvatika (since 2023–24), the birth and vaccination data from the state health department has been integrated with the education department’s Child Tracking System (CTS). This integration has helped ensure nearly 100% enrollment, especially among children of migrant families, through intensive tracking.

A survey covering 8.75 lakh children eligible for Balvatika admission has been completed, along with 10.50 lakh children for Std 9 and 4.50 lakh children for Std 11.

Moreover, with the help of Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Vidya Samiksha Kendra will identify potential dropouts using various datasets. Such students and their parents will be invited to the Praveshotsav program and sensitized about the importance of completing school education for the overall development and future of the child. DeshGujarat