Delhi built more classrooms in 7 years than Centre, other States: Kejriwal

New Delhi [India], February 19 : Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday said that the Delhi Government has built 20,000 classrooms in the last seven years and added that this is more than the combined number of classrooms built by Central and state governments during this period.
The Delhi Chief Minister inaugurated 12,430 new smart classrooms in 240 government schools of the national capital at Rajkiya Kanya Vidyalaya in Rajokri.
Speaking at the event, Kejriwal said, "Delhi government has built a total of 20,000 classrooms in the last 7 years. All the state governments and central government combined could not set up 20,000 classrooms in this period."
The Chief Minister further said that the AAP-led Delhi government is fulfilling the dreams of Babasaheb Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh, where children of rich and poor go to the same schools.
"It was the dream of Baba Sahab (Dr BR Ambedkar) that every student gets the best education. Unfortunately, even after 75 years of Independence, his dream could not come true in other states. I am happy that his dreams have started coming true at least in Delhi. We will fulfill the dream of Babasaheb and Bhagat Singh in Delhi," said Kejriwal.
He also said that smart classes have started in Delhi schools now and the poor children will also get a good education. "We have fixed the health system in Delhi. Our aim is that the country should move forward," he added.
Kejriwal claimed that government schools have been given world-class facilities and over 20,000 additional classrooms, and teachers have been trained at renowned institutions in the nation.
"To provide world-class education to children, the Delhi Board School Education was formed, and it collaborated with the International Baccalaureate. Along with this, Deshbhakti Curriculum was started to inculcate the feeling of patriotism in the children," he added.
The Chief Minister said that their purpose is not politics but to build a better nation.
"For the past few days, many big leaders of the country have been saying that Kejriwal is a terrorist, which made me laugh. The person, whom they are calling a terrorist, is today dedicating 12,430 classrooms to the nation," he said.
Referring to Manish Sisodia's speech Kejriwal said, "The education minister said that this year 3 lakh 70 thousand students have taken admission in Delhi's government schools and have left private schools. What else can prove that the education revolution is coming in Delhi."
Kejriwal took a dig at other leaders saying, "They don't fear anything except for schools. If good schools are built, leaders will not get votes in the name of caste and religion. These schools will produce staunch patriots. We are not building schools, we are setting up factories to make patriots," he added.
He also said that if any state government wants to improve education, healthcare system, the AAP-led Delhi Government is ready to offer help.
Deputy Chief Minister and Education Minister Manish Sisodia and Delhi's Home Minister Satyendar Jain were also present on the occasion.
Notably, this comes a day ahead of the Assembly polls in Punjab where the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is contesting.
With the inauguration of 12,430 new smart classrooms, the tally of new classrooms built by the Kejriwal government reached 20,000 which is synonymous with 537 new school buildings, as per a statement issued by the Delhi government.
The specialties of the new buildings constructed by the government include designer desks in classrooms, libraries, and multipurpose halls for the conduct of events.