39 schools across the country awarded Swachh Vidyalaya Puraskar

The Ministry of Education has recently announced the 39 schools from across India which have been recognised for the Swachh Vidyalaya Puraskar. This honour has been bestowed on these institutions for the 2021-22 academic session.

These schools have been selected from among the 8.23 lakh entries that include 28 government and aided while 11 are private ones. The awarded institutions also include two Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas, one Navodaya Vidyalaya and three Kendriya Vidyalayas.

The honour means that the schools that have not only taken exemplary steps in the field of water, sanitation and hygiene but also provided a benchmark and roadmap for schools to make further improvements. The schools were rated on six broad parameters like water, toilets, handwashing with soap, operation and maintenance, behavioural change, capacity building and COVID-19 (preparedness and response).

“Out of 39 schools, 17 are elementary and 22 are secondary/ higher secondary schools. Cash prizes of Rs 60,000 to 34 schools (in overall category) and Rs 20,000 (in sub-categories) were given to the awardee schools,” a Ministry of Education Official said. The third edition of the award saw participation from 9.59 lakh schools.