Chief Minister Conrad Sangma said that the government has sought setting up of test centres across the State for the upcoming Common University Entrance Test (CUET).
Sangma said that he has written to the University Grants Commission for establishment of CUET test centres across the 12 districts and urged students to appear for the exam.
Meghalaya has only two centres to conduct the CUET. The National Testing Agency has notified only two centres – one Shillong and one in Ri Bhoi.
Registration for the CUET through the National Testing Agency web portal has started since April 6 and will be open till May 6.
The date of CUET has not been released officially yet but the exam is expected to be conducted in the second week of July, 2022.
Addressing a function to inaugurate the new building of A’konggre Secondary School in Tura today, the chief minister informed that out of Rs 16000 crore of the total expenditure which is incurred by the State, around Rs 2700 crore is spent annually for the education, which includes salaries of teachers and development of learning facilities and infrastructure.
“Close to 20 per cent of the total state budget is accorded for education,” he said.
Sangma said different intervention to upgrade school infrastructure in the state has been initiated by the government, apart from Rs 200 crore which was allocated for upgradation of elementary schools across the state an additional Rs 170 crore has been earmarked this year.
“In the next six months, more than 2500 government LP schools will be renovate and repaired at a lump sum cost of Rs 2 – 3 lakhs, and about Rs 45 lakh each to about 78 LP schools, which are in dilapidated condition,” he said, adding, that 11 secondary and higher secondary schools will be given financial sanction of about Rs 3-4 crore for overhaul of infrastructure and learning facilities.
Meanwhile, the new building of the A’konggre Secondary School was built at an estimated cost of Rs 1.47 crore under Asian Development Bank’s Supporting Human Capital Development and implemented by the Education Department.
The new building includes classrooms, science lab, computer lab and digital classrooms.