Agartala: Tripura will launch a disaster management programme in its schools to enhance the State’s preparedness in an event of a natural calamity striking it, an official said here on Monday.

“The government has launched an ambitious School Disaster Management Planning (SDMP) project from this academic session. Under it, teachers and students will be trained to deal with any natural disaster, including earthquake,” said State education department joint director Dilip Debbarma.

The Bihar Government’s plan and efforts to upgrade its primary education infrastructure received a jolt as the Centre drastically cut its contributory share of funds under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) scheme during the just-concluded financial year. The state’s Education Minister PK Shahi said that out of the Centre’s share of Rs 7,040 crore, Bihar could just get Rs 1,900 crore including the last instalment of Rs 180 crore that was received here on March 31.

Tuesday's meeting to examine the pricing policy prepared by ministry of chemicals & fertilisers

On Tuesday, a group of ministers (GoM) led by agriculture minister Sharad Pawar will examine the proposed National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP) prepared by the ministry of chemicals and fertilisers.

Chandigarh: The Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) has sanctioned Rs 54 crore grant to Chandigarh Unit of Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) for academic session 2012-13. Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan had put across a budget proposal of Rs 72 crore.

This year, two new schools will be set up under SSA in Sector 48 and 49. Both the schools will be Government Model High Schools (upto Class X).

A sum of Rs 5.12 crore has been set aside for expenses incurred on mid-day meals.

The disease has claimed 861 lives so far with 470 in U.P. alone

Concerned over the high mortality and morbidity because of Japanese encephalitis (JE) and acute encephalitis syndrome (AES), the Group of Ministers (GoM) held its first meeting here on Monday to discuss short, medium and long-term measures needed to deal with the disease. Already 861 lives have been lost to the disease – with over 470 in eastern Uttar Pradesh alone.

Concerned over the large number of child deaths due to measles every year, the Centre has launched a massive anti-measles vaccination drive. More than 13 crore children are expected to be covered under the Measles Catch-up Campaign, irrespective of their previous measles vaccination status.

This Education Day (November 11), the principal of each elementary school in India will receive VVIP mail -- a letter from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
Contained therein will be a highly personalised message of the PM for the children of the country, who have long been guaranteed the Right to Education (RTE) by law, but who may not still know of it.

Concerned about the lack of awareness about the legal entitlement to basic education for children up to the age of 14, the human resource development ministry has planned out a yearlong community awareness and mobilisation programme. The Shiksha ka Haq Abhiyan (Right to Education campaign) will be flagged of on November 11, which is observed as Education Day, from Mewat district in Rajasthan, which has among the lowest education performance parameters in country.

The Centre has sanctioned over 11,000 primary and upper primary schools in Uttar Pradesh under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) in pursuance of the notification of the State Right to Free and Compulsory Education Rules issued by the government in July.

On May 30, as the joint drafting committee of the Lokpal Bill met for the fifth time in the conference room of the ministry of finance in North Block, trouble was already brewing. In the last four meetings, the contentious issues had been put on the backburner and the government’s representatives, led by the formidable Pranab Mukherjee, had discussed the broad principles of the proposed legislation. However, this time, within minutes, the finance minister dropped a bombshell. The prime minister, he said, would not be placed under the ambit of the proposed bill.