Rajasthan's 'Shiksha Rath' keeps the wheels running to bridge India's digital divide!

With the pandemic-led lockdown accelerating digital education, India finally unlocked the effectiveness and benefits of digitalised education. As the country continues to move things online for better access and availability every day, the education system too is following closely behind. In a unique move, the first digital “classroom on wheels” was rolled out in Rajasthan to deliver doorstep education to rural kids.

Even in India’s diverse educational system, digital education opens immense benefits, numerous use-cases and creative adaptation for both students and teachers. Aiming to provide affordable education over, ‘Classroom on wheels’ aka the ‘Shiksha Rath’ is expected to reach over 5 million students living in villages and remote areas of India.

This unique concept is touted to be the first-of-its-kind initiative rolled out to promote innovative learning in North India by providing a live digital learning experience to students from rural part of North India.

Aiming to address the scarcity of good teachers especially in rural India, the initiative seeks to provide quality education by bridging the gap between top educators and the masses.

The 'Shiksha Rath' has been on the roads since April 13 and seeks to cover small towns and villages in Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Barmer districts as a part of its first phase. Equipped with high-speed internet, the van resembles a vanity van, complete with bedroom, kitchen, dining area and washroom.

According to Dr. Nirmal Gehlot, who conceptualised this project, "the initiative is aimed to reach out to more than 5 million students in the next 2 years."

Starting from the Hindi heartland of the country, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana and Delhi, the project hopes to launch 10 more Shiksha Raths across India in the next 5 years.

- With inputs from IANS