After CJP’s drive, Rajasthan unveils Rs 12,500cr school revamp plan

CJP activists were assaulted during their visit to a Rajasthan village as part of their nationwide ‘School Thik Karo’ campaign.

JAIPUR: Under intense pressure from CJP’s nationwide ‘School Thik Karo’ campaign, Congress joining the call for govt school inspections, and impending local body polls, Bhajan Lal Sharma govt has unveiled a three-year, Rs 12,500-crore roadmap for strengthening school infrastructure.The announcement, made late Saturday evening, came after a week of opposition and public outcry over restrictions on visiting and filming govt schools, the alleged assault on CJP activists and Congress gunning for the govt in the Assembly over the issue.The move is being seen in political circles as an attempt to counter growing scrutiny on a long-pending demand for developing basic public infrastructure. Although the issue does not concern the ruling party alone, the timing of the protests, coming just before local body polls, has put the ruling BJP in a spot.“CJP’s call to citizens to visit govt schools and document their condition, followed by Congress making school infrastructure a political issue, has given the campaign momentum. Allowing the issue to remain unanswered would have allowed the opposition to define the narrative ahead of local body elections,” a senior BJP leader said, requesting anonymity.Under the proposed roadmap, 3,587 new school buildings will be constructed at a cost of Rs 2,487.7 crore, while 83,783 classrooms will be built with an expenditure of ₹8,378.3 crore.

Major repairs in 22,589 schools will cost the taxpayer a further Rs 1,129.5 crore, while 13,616 toilet complexes have been planned at a cost of Rs 340.4 crore.The govt said over Rs 3,006 crore worth of school development works have already been sanctioned or are at various stages of completion.The digital education component of the govt’s outlay includes 9,000 smart classrooms, 7,000 information and communication technology (ICT) labs and 80,000 tablets, with Rs 1,087 crore earmarked for spending on digital education by Dec 2026.According to the govt, 3,364 major school construction and repair works worth Rs 1,219.9 crore were sanctioned in 2024-25 and 2025-26, including 614 new school buildings and major repairs in 2,750 schools.