Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that his government was committed to cleansing the education system of cheating for brighter future of students.
He pointed out that the examination system of Uttar Pradesh had been marred by the evil of cheating in the last many years
“When we launched the campaign to cleanse the education system of its evils around two years back, the situation in the state was quite challenging. But our government was successful in launching a massive crackdown on cheating,” Yogi said at a function to felicitate meritorious students organised at Dr Ram Manohar Lohia National Law University in Ashiyana here on Sunday.
Highlighting the steps taken to curb use of unfair means in examinations, the Chief Minister said the government held a dialogue with teachers and students. “We got full support of principals, teachers, parents and educational institutions in making examinations copying-free. Around five lakh students skipped exams after the government restricted use of unfair means. During probe, it was found that the sole aim of these examinees was to get admissions (in higher classes) through unfair means,” he said.
“Our government ensured that instead of declaring holidays on the anniversaries of great personalities, the schools should tell students about their contributions to society. We also ensured that all examinations were conducted in 15 days instead of three months and we thank the UP Secondary Education Board for this feat,” he said.
At the function, the Chief Minister felicitated 1,695 meritorious students of UP, CBSE and ICSE boards. As many as 120 meritorious students who figured in the state merit lists of High School and Intermediate examinations received Rs 1 lakh each as cash prize, tablets and citations.
As many as 1,575 meritorious students figuring in the top ten lists at district level received Rs 21,000 each as cash prize and tablets.
The Chief Minister said education not just provided degrees but helped in overall growth of an individual and laid the foundation for fulfilling the vision of ‘Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat’.
“Parents play an important role in the development of the child and a child’s first teacher is his mother. A child will develop according to the environment provided to him,” the Chief Minister said.
He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi was of the view that protection of public property was the responsibility of all people as it belonged to all people.
“If students and teachers start cleaning the school campus, their efforts should be appreciated,” he said.
Deputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma said meritorious students played a key role in making exams cheating-free.
“Our government has also brought a change by introducing NCERT books in UP. Earlier, students had to buy costly books,” he said.
Minister of State for Secondary Education, Gulab Devi, and Principal Secretary (Secondary Education) Aradhana Shukla were also present on the occasion.