Praising the performance of Delhi government schools, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said that it was unfortunate to have two types of education systems, one for the rich and the other for the poor.

On the one hand those with money go to private schools, while those without money are forced to attend government schools. But the government schools in Delhi are now no less than private schools, he contended.

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Addressing a gathering after inaugurating a state-of-the art auditorium at a government school in Delhi’s Civil Lines on Monday, Delhi CM said facilities now made available in the government schools in Delhi were on par with those in the private schools and were even better in many cases.

He further said that during the past eight years, the Delhi government brought revolutionary changes in the education sector, altering this perception that private schools were rated above the government schools.

He said the government schools of national capital have joined the category of the country’s best schools as his government has changed the narrative that quality education is only available with money, as during the past 8 years, fundamental changes were brought in the education sector.

Kejriwal pointed out that back in the day, the period of 10 to 15 years after independence, many prominent personalities including top officials and experts of their fields studied in government schools, while private schools were few in numbers back then.

He said the education is a matter of priority and focus for the AAP government in Delhi, and added that infrastructure of government schools here underwent massive transformation.

Kejriwal further stressed that no government can claim that they cannot run schools, as the AAP government here has shown that it was possible. He said at present there are 18 lakh students enrolled in the government schools in Delhi, and now the students are more confident.

“If quality education is desired, money is needed, and many people don’t have that. Within the last 8 years, we’ve changed this belief. There’s been a significant change in the education sector in the past 8 years. Earlier, children attending government schools used to lack self-confidence, but now, there’s no lack of confidence. It was often observed that if a household had a boy and a girl, the boy would be sent to a private school while the girl to a government school,” Kejriwal said.

Mentioning the significance of the newly constructed auditoriums in schools, he said. It is  not just about physical structures, even the best private schools in Delhi might not have auditoriums equipped with modern facilities like this and infrastructure developed within  government schools is now unmatched even by private schools.

‘The facilities children are receiving in government schools today are not available in the best private schools,’ Kejriwal added.

Delhi CM further said that Delhi government school teachers are being sent for training to foreign countries and institutions like the IIMs.

Delhi Education Minister Atishi, who was also present on the occasion, lauded the cultural performance by the school children.

She said, “There was a feeling among our students that they are a little less than their counterparts in private schools. They were a little under confident. But today after seeing the performance of our students, this auditorium, and the compering done by our students, I can proudly say that soon we will see our students in the headlines of newspapers and amongst those leading the world in the coming 10-15 years. I would like to thank CM Shri Arvind Kejriwal for always keeping education on priority and making a significant investment in it.”