Monday, June 20 2005 21:01 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Patna: The Centre proposes to open 82 residential schools for girls in Bihar from next month in which 75 per cent of seats would be reserved for minority Muslims, SC and ST and backward castes, Union Minister of State for Human Resources Development M A A Fatmi said today (Jun 20, 2005).

In the beginning 50 students would be admitted in 'Kasturba Gandhi Residential Schools' out of which 75 per cent of seats would be reserved for muslims, SC ST and Backward Castes, Fatmi told reporters after a review meeting of progress of literacy mission in the State.

The Minister said that for the first time in the country, reservation would be provided to muslims for admission in schools keeping in view the lower education standard of the minority community.

Each school would cost around Rs 34 lakh including the building construction charge, he said.

Stating that the centre was committed to uplift the education in Bihar, the Minister, who is also MP from Darbhanga, said as part of literacy mission, the centre had provided grants to 39 base schools, 79-charwaha vidyalaya (Sephard schools, a brainchild of RJD President Laloo Prasad) besides a large number of Madrasas and Sanskrit Institutions.

Lamenting that about 20 lakh children in the age group of 6 to 14 were not attending schools in Bihar, Fatmi said the centre had targetted to admit all the children of the State from standard one to standard five by 2007.

He said around 46,000 'Siksha Mitras' (friends of literacy) have been appointed in the State so far and another 25,000 would be added to it in the next three months.