Bihar govt to introduce mandatory games period, ‘no-bag day’ in schools

Education Department’s Additional Chief Secretary Dipak Kumar Singh, while speaking to news agency PTI, said a notification to this effect will be issued soon. 

On “No-bag day” Singh said weekly no-bag day will have practical classes. He added, “At least once a week, students will come to schools only with their lunch boxes. They do not need to carry books. The day will be devoted to practical and experiential learning,”

“School authorities must prepare curriculum for such activities. This step will certainly bring positive changes among students, which will also improve their learning ability. Encouraged by an impressive performance of our students in regional, national and international sporting events, we will introduce mandatory games period in schools,” Singh further added

Singh says the new initiative by the state government is in line with the National Education Policy 2022 and it would be implemented across private and government run schools.

On the mandatory games period once, Bihar state Art, Culture and Youth Minister Jitendra Kumar Rai said, “Our department is preparing a proposal in this regard. I will meet the state education minister and submit the detailed proposal to him.”

While claiming authorities wanted sports to be an essential part of the academic curriculum, Rai said,”If a games period is introduced in schools, we would be able to identify talents at a very early stage. The government will accordingly prepare them for the state, national and international sporting events,”

Rai says it’s a ‘matter of pride’ for Bihar that players from the state have performed exceptionally well in international and national games while adding six medals were won by athletes from Bihar at the recently finished World Championship of Arnis Games in the Philippines.

Eastern state’s Chandan Kumar Singh won a lawn bowls medal at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, while Muzaffarpur’s Sharad Kumar made history by winning the state’s first-ever Paralympic medal when he finished third in the men’s high jump F42 category at the Tokyo Para Games.

The minister says, according to their position at the national-level sporting events athletes in the state are given a subsidiary grant to use for sports kits, and treatment and enrolment in the course of the National Institute of Sports. He added that ₹21.02 lakh was given as a subsidiary grant to 70 athletes in 2020-21.

With inputs from PTI

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