Steps taken by the Government to support Out of School Children and orphaned children due to COVID-19

Department of School Education & Literacy (DOSE&L) has developed an online module for compiling the data of Out of School Children (OoSC) identified by each State/UT and their mapping with Special Training Centres (STC) on the PRABANDH Portal (http://samagrashiksha.in). The concerned State/UT validates the child wise information of the identified OoSC and STC uploaded by the concerned Block Resource Centre of the State for monitoring the progress of mainstreaming of OoSC.  Under Samagra Shiksha, for the first time in 2021-22, financial assistance upto Rs 2000 per annum has been envisioned for supporting Out of School Children of age group of 16-19 for completing their education through NIOS/SIOS, for accessing course materials and certification.

DOSE&L and Ministry of Women & Child Development have issued a joint D.O. letter No. 13-10/2021-IS-11 dated 16.06.2021 to facilitate education for children orphaned due to COVID-19 by bringing them under the fold of the various schemes run by Department of School Education & Literacy, and outlining the role of teachers, District Education Officers and Child Welfare Committees.

This information was given by the Union Minister of Education, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.