Rashtriya Madhyamik Siksha Abhiyan (RMSA)

Overview

This scheme was launched in March, 2009 with the objective to enhance access to secondary education and to improve its quality. The implementation of the scheme started from 2009-10. It is envisaged to achieve an enrolment rate of 75% from 52.26% in 2005-06 at secondary stage within 5 years of implementation of the scheme by providing a secondary school within a reasonable distance of any habitation. The other objectives include improving quality of education imparted at secondary level through making all secondary schools conform to prescribed norms, removing gender, socio-economic and disability barriers, providing universal access to secondary level education by 2017, i.e., by the end of 12th Five Year Plan and achieving universal retention by 2020.

Important physical facilities provided under the scheme are:

(i) Additional class rooms, (ii) Laboratories, (iii) Libraries, (iv) Art and crafts room, (v) Toilet blocks, (vi) Drinking water provisions and (vii) Residential Hostels for Teachers in remote areas.

Important quality interventions provided under the scheme are:

(i) appointment of additional teachers to reduce PTR to 30:1, (ii) focus on Science, Math and English education, (iii) In-service training of teachers, (iv) science laboratories, (v) ICT enabled education, (vi) curriculum reforms; and (vii) teaching learning reforms.

Important equity interventions provided in the scheme are:

(i) special focus in micro planning (ii) preference to Ashram schools for upgradation (iii) preference to areas with concentration of SC/ST/Minority for opening of schools (iv) special enrolment drive for the weaker section (v) more female teachers in schools; and (vi) separate toilet blocks for girls.

Implementation mechanism of the Scheme

The scheme is being implemented by the State government societies established for implementation of the scheme. The central share is released to the implementing agency directly. The applicable State share is also released to the implementing agency by the respective State Governments.

FINANCIAL AND PHYSICAL PROGRESS UNDER THE SCHEME

During the 11th Five Year Plan, the Central Government bore 75% of the project expenditure during the 11th Plan, with the remaining 25% being borne by State Governments. However, funding pattern was 90:10 for North Eastern States.

Approval of New Norms by CCEA:

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the proposal of the Ministry of Human Resource Development for the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA). This will facilitate the States / UTs to execute the civil works for construction of new schools as well as expanding capacity in existing schools.

The details are as follows:

(i) State/UT governments will be permitted to use State Schedule of Rates (SSoR) or Central Public Works Department (CPWD) Rate, (whichever is lower) for construction,

(ii) enhancing the funds of Management, Monitoring Evaluation and Research (MMER) from 2.2 percent to 4 percent of the total outlay,

(iii) subsuming other centrally sponsored schemes of secondary education- Information and Communication Technology (ICT) at school, girls hostel, Inclusive Education for Disabled at Secondary Stage (IEDSS) and Vocational Education (VE) in their existing form under the umbrella of RMSA. The pattern of assistance as well as coverage of schools as per their existing norms of all subsumed schemes will continue for the 12th Five Year Plan,

(iv) extending all the benefits of RMSA to aided secondary schools excluding infrastructure support / core areas,

(v) continuation of existing fund sharing pattern of 75:25 for the last four years of the 12th Plan to non – North Eastern Region (NER) states and 90:10 for NER States (including Sikkim), and

(vi) authorizing the RMSA Project Approval Board (PAD) of Ministry of Human Resource Development to consider for approval of the integrated plan of the umbrella scheme of RMSA, including the subsumed four centrally sponsored schemes of secondary education and release of funds to the RMSA state implementation society directly.

Out of enhanced MMER of 4 percent, fund up to 3.5 percent of the annual budget allocated for RMSA will be earmarked to the states/UTs for activities undertaken under MMER. In those states and UTs where the proposed percentages of MMER do not meet the requirement, MMER can be enhanced upto 5 percent of the budget allocation of the concerned states/UTs.

Since inception of the scheme, the RMSA has been able to enhance access to secondary schools by sanctioning setting up of 9,636 new secondary schools, and strengthening of 34,300 existing government secondary schools.