Excursions for Haryana students at government expense

excursionChandigarh, Dec 15 : School students in Haryana can look forward to some fun while learning. They will soon get outdoor education with the state government initiating a scheme to take them on excursion tours.

The state government has framed a policy 'Excursion Tour of Students' under which students of Classes 9 to 12 in government schools will be taken on a study tour once a year.

"The policy has been framed to provide conducive atmosphere for the all-round growth and development of children through interaction with other children and exposure to new places of interest," Haryana's Education Minister Geeta Bhukkal said here Tuesday.

Bhukkal said that Rs. 11 crore had been sanctioned by the state government for the year 2009-10 for this purpose. The respective amount of sanction has been sent to all schools of the state which should be incurred by Jan 31, 2010, she added.

The students will be taken to places of historical and cultural importance that are located within a 100-km radius of the school so that they can return by evening on the same day.

The excursions could be to museums, botanical and herbal gardens, historical places, big industrial units, universities, exhibitions, trade fairs and book fairs, Bhukkal said.

However, cinema halls would not be included under this programme. Haryana Roadways buses would be used for these trips.

The education minister said that one teacher would be deputed for every 20 students going on such tours. She added that the tours would be arranged in a manner that the academic curriculum was not disturbed.(IANS)