Soon, the state’s two major education boards — the Board of Secondary Education (BSE) and the Council of Higher Secondary Education (CHSE) — will be merged to form a single board. This was announced by School and Mass Education Minister Nityananda Gond.

According to the Minister, the government has taken this decision based on the New Education Policy. After the formation of a single board, employees will be restructured as per the rules. At present, the BSE office is located in Cuttack and the CHSE office in Bhubaneswar. The location of the new unified board office will be decided later.

The Minister further stated that schematic primary teachers will be regularized. Similarly, all vacant teacher posts across the state will be filled. Around 15,000 teachers will be appointed every year, and within the next three years, 44,433 positions will be filled, as per the Chief Minister’s decision.

In addition, child caretakers will be appointed in 45,000 primary schools. Free textbooks will be provided to students of Class 9 and 10 in government and aided schools.

The Minister also said that the government is paying special attention to the health issues of hostel students. Hence, one ANM (Auxiliary Nurse Midwife) will be appointed for every 300 children.

“Since the Chief Minister himself has been a teacher, he is keen on strengthening primary education. The government is committed to completing the work within the stipulated time,” said the School and Mass Education Minister.