CBSE’s ‘Udaan’ Initiative Helping Girl Students Prepare For IIT
The IITs have introduced a special quota for girl students this year to fill the gender balance in the prestigious institutes; and CBSE has come up with ‘Uddan’ initiative which is helping girls going through the JEE. The project has helped 135 girl students to clear the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE)-Mains for admission in engineering colleges this year.
The scheme with a vision of “New India”, assists girl students with an overall score of 70 percent or above, and 80 percent in science and mathematics stream with free of cost tutorials, mentoring support, lectures and study material to prepare for engineering entrance examinations. Virtual contact classes are also organised in 60 designated cities. Helpline services provide doubt clarification and monitor student learning.
R K Chaturvedi CBSE Chairman told PTI, “The project motivates meritorious girls towards further study of science and mathematics instead of soft subjects, it hand holds them and provides necessary training. “The scheme relies on latest technology which gives ease of learning to a girl student without having to step out of her home on a daily basis. The study materials are pre-loaded on tablets and made convenient with mobile applications.”
The initiative has helped 135 girls in clearing the JEE-Mains exam this year, compared to 143 girls last year. Chaturvedi added that the participation of girl students in engineering entrance examinations as compared to boys is much lower. More than 75 percent of the registered candidates are boys. The idea is to mainstream girl students and prepare them for future leadership roles by removing social, economic or cultural constraints.
The scheme is limited for students with family annual income of less than Rs 6 lakh. Besides subject experts, students from IITs are also serving as mentors, and motivational tours to IIT Delhi are also arranged under the scheme.
