Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik made a surprise visit to a smart classroom in Hinjili to inspect the progress made by the state government under the 5T initiative. The CM decided to take a detour and spend time with students during his one-day visit to Ganjam where he was distributing the smart health cards under the Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana (BSKY).
Arpita Rani Padhy, a Class 10 student of Brundaban Government High School, Hinjili was taken by surprise seeing Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik seated with the students. “We were really happy when the chief minister sat with us and enquired about how we felt after the transformation of the 80-year old school under the 5T initiative,” she said.
The Brundaban Government High School is among the many high schools chosen during the first phase of the High School Transformation programme.
Many students came forward to express their shock and excitement as they attended classes with the CM.
“Initially we felt nervous when the chief minister entered the classroom. We thought he would sit on the teacher’s chair and ask questions. But we were very surprised when he sat on the bench meant for students”, said Jasawant Jani.
Ankita Panda, a Class 10 student who saw Patnaik while she was at the e-library, said, “We felt very proud as the chief minister sat with us”.
It was a proud moment for the teachers of the school too. “We have decided to preserve the bench where the chief minister sat along with the students as a memory of his visit,” said Santilata Rana, headmistress of the school.
Notably, more than 130 high schools in the district have been transformed in the first phase. In the second phase, the Odisha government aims to modernise the infrastructure of another 233 high schools.