Gandhinagar, June 24 (IANS) More than 11.20 lakh students have been enrolled across Gujarat in the first two days of the state government’s ‘Kanya Kelavani Mahotsav and Shala Praveshotsav 2026’ campaign, with the enrolment drive covering over 17,000 villages and nearly 25,000 schools, according to official figures released on Wednesday.

The second day of the annual school enrolment campaign saw programmes organised in 8,173 villages and 11,987 schools across the state.

A total of 29,682 dignitaries, including ministers, elected representatives and senior government officials, visited schools to welcome children and encourage enrolment.

Combined figures for the first two days show that the drive has covered 17,338 villages and 24,716 schools, with 60,184 public representatives and officials participating in various events. “The campaign has so far resulted in the enrolment of more than 11.20 lakh students,” the government said.

The 24th edition of the enrolment initiative was launched on Monday by Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel from B.N. High School in Vadnagar, the school attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his childhood.

The campaign aims to increase literacy levels and ensure that all eligible children are enrolled in the education system.

According to the official data, more than 62,000 children began their educational journey on Wednesday through admissions to Anganwadis and pre-primary institutions.

In Balvatika classes, admissions exceeded the number of eligible children identified, with more than 1.40 lakh enrolments recorded against 139,925 eligible children.

The state also reported enrolment of more than 34,000 students in Class 1, 1,96,755 in Class 9, and 1,01,759 in Class 11.

In addition, 21,892 students identified through the state’s ‘Back to School Survey’ were admitted to educational institutions during the campaign.

As part of efforts to improve access to education, the government said it provided new transport facilities to 847 schools.

The initiative is intended to help students from remote and underserved areas reach educational institutions more easily. The government also distributed ‘Vidhyalakshmi Bonds’ to 5,664 girl students during the programme.

The bonds aim to encourage continued education among girls and support their pursuit of higher education.

The campaign also received support through public participation. According to official figures, contributions worth more than Rs 9.19 crore were received during the drive.

This included cash donations exceeding Rs 1.25 crore, as well as educational materials valued at more than Rs 7.95 crore, donated to schools across the state.

The Kanya Kelavani Mahotsav and Shala Praveshotsav were launched by the state government in 2003 as a statewide initiative to improve school enrolment, particularly among girls and children from disadvantaged communities.

The programme is held annually ahead of the new academic session and involves outreach activities in villages and schools across Gujarat.

–IANS

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