700 more Eklavya Model Residential schools by 2022: Jual Oram
Jamshedpur, Oct 30: Union minister Jual Oram on Tuesday said the government is planning to start 700 more Eklavya Model Residential school (EMRS) across the country by 2022.
EMRS is a central scheme of model residential schools for tribals (Scheduled Tribes) across the country which was launched in 2000.
Tribal Affairs Minister Oram, who was in the steel city to participate in the two-day national-level EMRS music competition organized by the East Singhbhum district administration at Tata Auditorium here, said the purpose was to bridge the competence gap between the tribal youths and others in all fields including higher studies and competitive examinations.
Addressing the gathering as chief guest on the occasion, Oram said currently there are 182 Eklavya schools operating in the country and the government has plans to start 700 more by 2022.
The schools would be opened in blocks where tribal population was over 20,000, he said adding that 80 per cent of blocks in Jharkhand would come under the scheme.
Lauding the performance of EMRS, the minister said the students were doing well and secured first and second ranks so far as Union Public Service Commission or State Public Service Commissions competitive examination were concerned.
The students are, however, lagging behind in confidence in the competitive exams, he said.
"We have to inculcate confidence among them that they are the national achievers in any field whether it was sports or education and can improve their performances," he said.
Oram said the government has provided pilot training to tribal youths under the scheme and have been coaching them for professional competitions.
Appreciating the Jharkhand government's efforts in organising the inaugural edition of the national level EMRS music competition successfully, the minister assured that the event will be organized every year.
Altogether, 12 states including Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Nagaland, Odisha, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand took part in the competition.
Later, speaking to reporters, Oram said the government would spend Rs 25,000 crore by 2022 to improve the standard of life of the tribal community.
Apart from Oram, Union Minister of State for Tribal affairs Sudarshan Bhagat, Jharkhand Tribal Welfare Minister Louis Marandi, Secretary (Tribal Affairs), Government of India, Vinod Tiwari and Secretary (Tribal Welfare) Himani Pande also spoke on the occasion.
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Ahmedabad plane crash: Six months on, college hostel lies in ruins, sans bustle of students
Ahmedabad (PTI): Six months after the AI-171 plane crash, the B J Medical College hostel complex in Ahmedabad stands as a haunting reminder, with its charred walls and burnt trees replacing the once lively chatter of students with an eerie stillness.
Scattered across the crash site are grim remnants of daily life - burnt cars and motorcycles, twisted beds and furniture, charred books, clothes and personal belongings.
The Atulyam-4 hostel building and the adjoining canteen complex stand abandoned, with entry strictly prohibited.
For residents near the site, memories of the incident still linger, casting a lasting shadow on their lives, with some of them saying they are still afraid to look up at the sky when an aircraft passes overhead.
On June 12, Air India flight AI-171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner bound for London, crashed moments after take-off from the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, killing 260 persons.
The aircraft slammed into the BJ Medical College hostel complex in Meghaninagar, turning a lively student neighbourhood into a landscape of ruin and grief.
"The area now lies very silent, only a few birds chirp here," Sanjaybhai, a security guard deployed at the premises by authorities to prevent trespassing, told PTI.
Mahendrasingh Jadeja, a general store owner whose shop is just 50 metres from the point where the aircraft struck, described it as an unimaginable calamity. "In all my years, I have never seen anything like this."
Pointing to a tree behind his shop, the 60-year-old said the aircraft first struck there before crashing into the hostel building.
"It was a scorching summer afternoon. Not many people were outside. When I heard a loud crashing sound, I ran out of my shop. We were all terrified," he recalled.
"Even today, we instinctively look up whenever a plane passes overhead," he added.
Another local, Manubhai Rajput, who lives barely 200 metres from the site, said he witnessed the horror unfold on June 12.
"The plane was flying unusually low. Before I could understand what was happening, there was thick black smoke and a deafening crash," he said.
For over three decades, Rajput and his neighbours lived close to the airport without giving much thought to the aircraft overhead.
"We never looked up at the sky. But that day is etched in my mind. The plane hit a tree first, and then there was a loud sound," he said.
Rajput recalled how hundreds of locals rushed to the site even before police, fire services or the Army arrived.
Tinaben, another resident of Meghaninagar, said she never imagined something like this could happen in Ahmedabad.
"Despite being close to the airport, this area always felt safe," she said.
As an aircraft roared overhead during the conversation, Tinaben paused, looked up nervously and said, "It's still scary."
A senior official of Civil Hospital Ahmedabad, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the state government has yet to decide what to do with the damaged site.
Currently, investigations are going on and the site is strictly prohibited for people, he added.
