Srinagar, Nov 26 (KNS): J&K Students Association here Friday expressed gratitude to Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and secretary Tribal Affairs department Dr Shahid Iqbal Choudhary for resolving the long pending and genuine issue of tribal students for transforming 200 schools into smart schools for tribal communities.

In a statement issued to KNS, national spokesperson of association Nasir Khuehami thanked lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha for announcing scholarships to 21000 students of Gaddi, Sippy, Dard, Shina communities.

He said these smart schools in tribal & remote areas equipped with modern facilities will develop scientific temper in children & make them future-ready, besides arresting the drop-out rate. The department is streamlining & moving on the right track with each passing day ever since Manoj Sinha and Dr. Shahid Iqbal Choudhary assumed the charge of lieutenant Governor and secretary tribal affairs respectively.

Association held deliberations with Lieutenant Governor and secretary Tribal Affairs many a times on scholarship, smart schools & revamping the tribal education system. The functioning of the department is beyond appreciation now because earlier the students had to move from pillar to post and wait for months to get the scholarships, now the process has been eased and students are getting the scholarship in due course.

Khuehami said, initiatives like these will surely bring a great change, particularly to the tribal community. Involving tribal students and giving them smart schools will make a big difference in the school dropout rate of the community. The administration has hit the perfect area to ensure the empowerment and modern-day education system to tribals.

He added that, Introduction of smart schools in tribal areas will go a long way to improve the teaching learning process in remote areas besides making it more attractive for tribal kids to return to the schools who have left the schools for range of reasons.

Tribal Coordinator of Association Aamir Anees said Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and Secretary Tribal affairs department Dr Shahid Iqbal Choudhary have paid valuable attention towards tribal communities. Tribal students will have a sigh of relief in these testing times. We had demanded to authorities to announce smart schools for tribal areas, today this was made possible, we hailed Lieutenant Governor for being sensitive to the needs and problems of the tribal students and prioritizing them for early redress.

Anees added that dropout rate shall also decrease in schools especially in tribal areas that has witnessed more dropout rate in past. The credit for this shall go the Lieutenant Governor and Secretary tribal affairs and the tribal community shall remain indebted to both of them. Tribal communities were neglected by all regimes, and now a change is visible, he added. (KNS)