Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami participated in the Pratibha Samman Samaroh-2025 held at Saraswati Vidya Mandir Inter College in Haridwar on Thursday. During the event, he inaugurated a newly constructed school building along with a modern smart classroom.
The ceremony was aimed at celebrating academic excellence among students and acknowledging the dedication of teachers. CM Dhami honoured several meritorious students and educators for their commendable contributions in the field of education.
Speaking at the event, the Chief Minister emphasized the role of Vidya Bharati in shaping India’s educational landscape post-independence. He said, "When the country was standing on its feet after independence, keeping in mind the spirit of nation-building, the Vidya Bharati Akhil Bharatiya Shiksha Sansthan, as an affiliate organization of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, planted a sapling in the form of Saraswati Shishu Mandir, which has today become a huge banyan tree and is working to take the country forward by educating our children in every corner of the country."
Highlighting the current impact of Vidya Bharati, he added, "More than 12 thousand schools are being run by Vidya Bharati in the country, in which more than 35 lakh students are getting education. In the field of higher education, Vidya Bharati runs more than 50 colleges and a university, through which, along with imparting modern education to the students, a sense of national service, morality, culture preservation, natural conservation and responsibility towards society is being developed in them."
CM Dhami noted that Vidya Bharati’s presence in Uttarakhand is extensive, with over 500 schools educating more than one lakh students across the state. Referring to the new facilities, he said, "The inauguration of 4 smart classes in this school today is direct proof of the fact that Vidya Bharati schools are not behind any modern school; all types of facilities are being provided in them too."
He reiterated the state’s commitment to education under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The state was among the first to implement the new National Education Policy. As part of the PM Shri scheme, 141 schools have been established, and the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Residential School is under construction. Additionally, virtual classrooms have been introduced in 500 schools across all 13 districts, and NCERT textbooks have been made mandatory. The “Lab on Wheels” initiative has been launched to make science education more accessible.
Students from Class 1 to 12 are receiving free textbooks, and younger students also receive shoes and school bags. The Chief Minister spoke about the establishment of 20 model colleges and 9 additional colleges. Infrastructure like women’s hostels, IT labs, and exam halls are being developed, while recruitment of teachers and assistant professors is ongoing.
On the sports front, he highlighted the government’s efforts to build facilities and support athletes, including scholarships and full provisions for those enrolled in the state’s residential sports college. He added that the government has initiated a policy to offer government jobs to medal-winning athletes in national competitions. These efforts contributed to Uttarakhand’s historic achievement of winning over 100 medals at the 38th National Games.
Addressing issues of fairness in recruitment, CM Dhami underlined the implementation of India’s strongest anti-copying law in Uttarakhand. "No copying mafia will be able to dominate the dreams of hardworking and talented children," he asserted. Since the law’s implementation, he said, not a single examination paper has been leaked, resulting in over 22,000 successful government job placements in the last three years.
In his concluding remarks, the Chief Minister encouraged students to stay committed to their studies and expressed hope that the school will continue to nurture the future generation with strong moral and social values.