Uttar Pradesh Govt Initiated to open 10 new Sanskrit Schools

According to state education department authorities, the state government has decided to open ten new government Sanskrit secondary schools in Uttar Pradesh to encourage Sanskrit education. Varanasi, Rae Bareli, Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar, Moradabad, Shamli, Jalaun, Etah, Amethi, and Hardoi are among the ten districts where these schools are expected to open.

There is currently only one government Sanskrit secondary school and one government Sanskrit degree college in the entire state. According to a state government spokesman, after receiving in-principle approval from the state government, officials from the state directorate of education have formally requested that funds be allocated for the establishment of these new Sanskrit schools.

Deepak Kumar, the principal secretary, sent a letter to the district magistrates of these five districts on March 22 seeking details on the feasibility of three acres of land for each proposed new college’s establishment. In the 2023-24 budget, the state government additionally set aside INR 10 crore for scholarships for students studying Sanskrit. Formerly, Sanskrit students in the state received a scholarship allocation of INR 2 lakh.

The secondary department of education recently suggested a scholarship payment of INR 131 crore to all students who study Sanskrit from school to college levels in Uttar Pradesh’s government-run, unaided, and self-financed Sanskrit institutions and colleges.

It is worth mentioning that the state government has budgeted Rs 100 crore for the establishment of Sanskrit schools in 2023-24. In addition, the government is planning to establish intermediate-level government Sanskrit secondary schools in Gorakhpur, Prayagraj, Ayodhya, Chitrakoot, and Mathura. These cities are being built to serve as significant religious centres.