The Uttar Pradesh government has mandated newspaper reading in all secondary and basic primary schools in the state as a daily activity for students. This initiative aimed at developing reading interest, logical thinking, expression skills, and the values of aware citizenship among children, Department of Basic Education, Uttar Pradesh in a post on X mentioned.
The order issued by Additional Chief Secretary (Secondary and Basic Primary Education) Parth Sarathi Sen Sharma on December 23 includes making both Hindi and English newspapers available in school libraries. "At least 10 minutes must be dedicated daily during morning assembly for newspaper reading. During this time, students will read out key editorials and major news developments from national, international and sports news on a rotational basis," read the order.
The students will take part in the "word of the day" exercise, where five difficult words from newspapers will be selected and displayed on the notice board to enhance vocabulary, as reported by news agency PTI.
The students of Classes 9 to 12 will be encouraged to write editorials once a week and participate in group discussions in class. They should discuss news on societal issues and development and are advised to prepare scrapbooks, take part in crossword and Sudoku competitions.
Schools are encouraged to promote these activities-
- Editorial writing among students
- Group discussions on societal issues and development
- To encourage students to prepare scrapbooks and take part in crossword and Sudoku competitions.
These instructions are in continuation of a previous order issued on November 2, under which the state had launched a broader reading campaign to inculcate book-reading habits among students and curb excessive use of mobile phones and social media, education department officials said.
The order allowed students' access to government district libraries, made it mandatory for them to issue at least one non-syllabus book every week, and introduced incentives such as appreciation certificates for avid readers.
It also launched the "No Bouquet, Only Book" campaign, under which books would be gifted instead of trophies at school functions. Both orders have been circulated to all divisional education officials, district inspectors of schools and basic education officers, with strict instructions to ensure full implementation across the state, senior officials said.
