Venkaiah Naidu launches Sanskriti Pre-Global School, Hyderabad

Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu launched Telangana State’s first National Pres-School Chain, “Sankriti Global Pre-School” here in a function held at HICC in city on Sunday morning. This is probably India’s first Pre-School Chain initiated by a woman educationist, while other chains were initiated by businessmen/organizations. Both Telugu states are home to over 8000 schools. But, Sanskriti was quick enough in identifying the opportunity. It is also considers this foray as the most satisfying investment, logical extension to its present line of activity.

Sanskriti Educational Society, the parent body owns and operates the immensely popular ‘Sanskriti School’ with over 700 strength in Kondapur in Hyderabad.

The Hyderabad based Sanskriti school which launched Pre-School Chain, plans to set up 3000 Franchisee Outlets in the next 5 years, Revati Raju, Founder informed 400 plus gathering in her welcome address. This target will be achieved through franchisee network through women entrepreneurs across Tier-II and Tier—III cities in the country, she declared.

Addressing the gathering, Venkaiah Naidu said ““When you educate a man, you educate an individual and when you educate a woman, you educate an entire family.” An education woman has the self confidence, skills as well as intelligence to understand the need. Education is the only tool with which girl or woman can empower herself and eventually her family, Venakaiah said.

Speaking further, he complimented Sanskriti as it is school based on Indian values. He also complimented them as they planned to engage women through whom they plant to expand their network in Tier-II and Tier—III cities.

He said India holds a strong determination in educating children, especially girl child. Even after declaring education as a fundamental right, approach towards girls education has not changed, he observed
He deplored the pathetic educational standards in rural areas where a fifth grader is unable to read second grade text books. Their level of maths and reading is declining, Venkaiah Naidu said.

If you want to lay strong foundation for India, the foundation has to be laid at primary educational level and that too in rural levels, Venkaiah Naidu told.

Education and text books should be made interesting. Rural education must be made more encouraging. There are many examples of success in rural education in India like the Barefoot College, 8 Day Academy and Gurukul School in Bihar. These are innovative and successful examples of schools running in rural India, he said. He highlighted the various programs taken up by the government of India in the recent past.

He said that Modi government draws motivation from the age old ways of according women their due.

In India, the number of children aged six or younger is approximately 16crore, which exceeds the entire population of Japan. Nearly 12.6crore kids are enrolled each year in pre schools. The pre-school market is slated to about Rs 13,300crore by this year according to a Crisil Research Report. The expenditure on pre-schooling is considered to be the 3rd largest expenditure group in the Indian household. Sanskriti Global Pre-School, chalked out its ambitious plans to be the most dynamic player in this vertical.

“Sanskriti Global Pre-School Chain” envisions a pan-India presence through Franchisee model. Hopes to have 100 franchise outlets in the very first of operations and targets to achieve 500 franchise outlets in the next five years. The franchise model is designed with an aim of transforming the pre-primary education landscape in India, announced Revati Raju, Founder of Sanskriti School. She gave outlines of the project while welcoming the gathering. She has transformed Sanskriti School from a fledgling school to a revered temple of learning. “Sanskriti Global Pre-School Chain” is her brain child.

We will roll out Sanskriti Global Pre-Schools with a focus on providing entrepreneurial opportunities to women, Revati added.

Research findings indicate that 70% of brain development occurs between 0-8 years. In the last 5 years, though the early-age education sector has witnessed many new entrants and attracted investments from new and existing players, there is still, a huge supply and demand gap. Statistics also reveals that we need 60,000+ pre-schools in the next 2 - 3 yrs. All these years, the growth of pre-schools were confined to metro and semi-metros. TIER-I and TIER-II cities and the rural segments have not been touched so far. We will reach out to those cities, she informed.

Revati has over one and half decade experience in Teaching and extensive exposure to the modern schooling paradigm. She is trained at Globally Acclaimed “Waldorf Educational Society’. She is trained and experienced well in Montessori Teaching Methodology. She has to her credit extensive Pre-primary and Primary Teacher Training programs across Telangana/AP on behalf APSTEP, Hyderabad. She is the brain behind “Sankriti Global Pre-School”, the only woman educationist initiated National Chain of Pre –Schools.

The Pre Primary Education model is developed after extensive research and understanding the insights of this vertical. In today’s techno-advanced world characterized by heightened competition, kids need to be better prepared to enter school and adapt in the new order if they are to excel, she said. The toddler years assume vital importance in the education process and have the longest-lasting effect on a child’s evolution as a competent individual with character, she added.

Sanskriti as a school has achieved many distinctions. Some of the path breaking program introduced by the school include, mSanstriti(Mobile Learing). This first of its kind of initiative of the school adopted a futuristic approach to radically transform school learning by promoting infinite self learning, personalized education and highest possible parent engagement for improved learning outcomes.

Sanskriti has come out with many industry first initiatives by embracing technology much faster than its peer group. Some of these include, proprietary pedagogy model ‘IMAGO’, eSanskriti: (Online platform integrated with academic implementation for administrative ease and continual monitoring of child’s progress for timely course correction),OGP (Overall Growth Plan), Optimized Class Durationand a host of other initiatives including Holistic Development Plan, Extra Curriculars, ADM- Annual Development Milestones and Edu-Nutro Meal, all combine to enhance the child’s learning experience and foster excellence.

Talking Points for Shri M.Venkaiah Naidu, Minister of Urban Development at the Inauguration of
?Global? Sanskriti P?re ?School Chain at Hyderabad on 7th February 2016

· “When you educate a man, you educate an individual and when you educate a woman, you educate an entire family.” This declaration is multi faceted—an educated woman has the self confidence, skills as well as intelligence to understand the need to be a better daughter, sister, wife and mother and make a progressive family. Education is the only tool with which a girl or a woman can empower herself and eventually her family.

· India holds a strong determination in educating all children, especially the girl child. By declaring education as a fundamental right, India ensures constitutional provisions for providing free and compulsory education to all the children between 6 to 14 years of age.

· Even after declaring education as a fundamental right, there are numerous hurdles that prohibit a girl child from actually getting education. The biggest hurdle is the prejudices that families have about girls—like girls are slow learners, they are not rational; they are to be confined inside the domestic household, and why bother about educating them.

· The problem is even more serious in rural areas. Only a handful of people have actually realized the importance of educating a girl.

· Majority of India still lives in villages and so rural education in India is of utmost importance. A recent surveyshows that even though the number of rural students attending schools is rising, but more than half of the students in fifth grade are unable to read a second grade text book and are not able to solve simple mathematical problems. Not only this, the level of maths and reading is further declining. Though efforts are being made, they are not in the right direction.

· Quality and access to education is the major concern in rural schools as there are fewer committed teachers, lack of proper text books and learning material in the schools. Though Government schools exist, but when compared to private schools, quality is a major issue.

· Children taught at an early age usually benefit in improved social skills, less or no need for special education instruction during subsequent school years, better grades, and enhanced attention spans.

· Some researchers have concluded that young children enrolled in pre-school programs usually graduate from high school, attend college, have fewer behavioral problems, and do not become involved with crime in their adolescent and young adult years.

· I compliment the management of SanskritiPlay Schools not for establishing chain of play schools, but for targeting girl child at their early childhood, that too in rural areas.

· This approach addresses major problem of rural areas i.e. quality and accessible education, tries to promoteeducation of girl child, there by leading the way to women entrepreneurship and women empowerment.

· The foundation to turn India into a strong nation has to be laid down at primary and rural levels and so the quality of education right from the beginning should be excellent.

· Education and text books should be made interesting. For rural students’ textbooks related to their culture, their traditions and values should also be there so as to create their interest in studies.

· There is a difference between city and village student not in terms of brain or development but their initial environment, skills, learning ability, availability of infrastructure, and access to different facilities.

· All of these must be considered while making the curricula which should not be different but how it is going to be taught would make the difference.

· Encourage the genuine rural students who are interested in education and make them competent. There are many examples of success in rural education in India like the Barefoot college, 8 Day Academy and Gurukul School in Bihar. These are innovative and successful examples of schools running in rural India.


· It is the time to replicate such efforts as our country and its rural population is very vast which means one of two stories of these kinds won’t make any difference. Instead of this large number of such schools are required in rural India.

· It is also absolutely mandatory to evaluate the success of the schools and students at each and every level. Timely assessment will throw light on present problems and achievements.

· As goes the saying from the Rig Veda, “the home has, verily, its foundation in the wife.” An educated mother can give better care to her children. Since she is the first teacher of the child, she is ought to be well versed to inculcate better value system in the child. An ignorant mother would not understand the idea of proper hygiene and sanitation leading to lack of proper care of the child—malnourishment is a living example of this problem.

· The government of India has initiated various programs and policies to ensure girl child education and empowerment of women.

· Recently Government has launched a scheme “BetiBachaoBetiPadhao” which Seeks to reverse the trend of rapidly falling Child Sex Ratio(CSR) from the current level of 918 by preventing gender biased sex selective elimination; ensuring survival, protection and education of girl child.

· One stop Centre for Women is another initiative where 36 centres are to be set up, one per state/UT. The centres will offer medical aid, police assistance, legal aid & counselling, psycho-social counseling, and aim to provide immediate support and aid to female victims of violence.

· Other initiatives include Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Bill, 2014 which was passed in winter session of Parliament; Revamped STEP(Support to Training & Employment Programme for Women) Scheme; Revamped RashtriyaMahilaKosh (RMK); Standard Operating Procedures to be implemented by Railways; Proposed Amendments to National Commission of Women Act, 1990; Rajya and ZillaSamman Awards for Women; National Bal Swachhta Mission etc.

· Even after so many programs and policies of the government, we are still lagging behind in providing education to the girl child. The problem here is not in implementation but in the level of commitment of people in general.

· It is generally held that women are the voiceless victims and at the receiving end across the world all through human civilizations. This has some basis.

· As far as our own civilization is concerned, woman is highly respected. Mother and Sister invoke the highest of human sentiments and feelings.

· In our mythological mindscape, women are accorded high positions of power and leadership. Saraswati heads the domain of education and knowledge. Parvati leads the defence department. Lakshmi heads the finance department. Rivers are named after Ganga, Yamuna, Godavari, Kaveri, Sarayu, Subarnarekha etc.

· Currently,Sushmaji heads external affairs, Smriti heads HRD Ministry, Uma Bharati presides over the flow of rivers and Nirmala overseas trade. Maneka looks after women and children. Harsimrat Kaur processes our food in the Modi government.

· So, our government draws motivation from the age old ways of according woman their due in that sense and is ensuring this by giving precedence to women in the implementation of all social welfare schemes.

· For eg, Households with women will get toilets on a priority basis under the Government’s “Swachh Bharat Mission”, single women and women-headed households will be considered first for allotment of houses under the slum redevelopment and rental housing components of the ‘Housing for All by 2022’ programme.

· MoUD is providing assistance towards construction of 104.1 lakh toilets in households, and has accorded priority to those households which have pensioners, girl children and pregnant and lactating mothers.

· The Ministry has also taken a decision to register houses constructed under the ‘Housing for All’ scheme in the name of the woman head of the household or in the joint name of the male head of the household and his wife, if applicable.

· The status of women in the society is an index of its civilization. Women as co-human beings have as much right to full development as man have and so emancipation of women is an essential prerequisite for economic development.

· Women accounting for about half of our population, we can’t progress without their contribution to their potential.

· Several studies have commented on the economic contribution of women in the ‘family economies’ in several ways as significant. Women deserve similar space in the modern economic structures.

· Our ethos and values have accorded a high place to woman. But some aberrations tend to upset the balance. It is time they are set right as we as a Nation pursue our quest for rapid growth and modernization.

· We need to respect women and empower them to face the world. That is what the SANSKRITI is trying to do today. I sincerely appreciate their initiative.

· Quality education of international standards to rural children is a necessity as they are left behind in the global development race due to socioeconomic imbalance.

· I hope SANSKRITI’s initiative will also bring modernisation in rural education which has largely been in urban India. The challenges of remote geography, lack of pedagogical resources, poor infrastructure, and poorly skilled human resources will be managed through the initiatives like these.

· I am given to understand that SANSKRITI will also promote the digital education initiatives by integrating m-SANSKRITI and e-SANSKRITI. The former aims to promote the self-learning skill among students and integrates the role of parents in the education of child and the latter brings multiple stakeholders together in managing, monitoring and mentoring the education of child.

· I am happy to learn that in this journey, SANSKRITI will foster and accelerate the women entrepreneurship by providing low cost business opportunity, ready-made entrepreneurship toolkit, and an ongoing training and support.

· There is a need for successful women role models as this is a key ingredient to increase the number of women entrepreneurs. Role models are motivators and many women will get motivated to replicate what other successful women did.

· See the success of Self Help Group movement in Andhra Pradesh. SHGs now became a success story of women entrepreneurship in the entire country. Women entrepreneurs represent a large and untapped resource for generating jobs and high-growth businesses.

· A ‘new hope’ and ‘enthusiasm’ prevail in our country today. As we collectively endeavor to realize that hope, the success and rise of women shall be an integral part of this new journey. I am sure it will happen.

· Though quite a few things are happening on the government front warranting my presence, I preferred to be here on this occasion since I firmly believe in empowerment of women.

· Thank you for giving me this opportunity.