Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan

The World Bank has expressed interest to support the newly launched Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) scheme for improvement of quality of secondary education in the country.

The Ministry of HRD has agreed to the proposal of the World Bank and has written to Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) for further action, DEA sources told PTI.

The Bank at present also supports the government's flagship programme, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), which aims at universalisation of elementary education.

The Bank has taken interest in RMSA keeping in view the objective of the programme to check drop-out rate at secondary level completely by 2020.

The scheme also aims to achieve a general enrollment target of 75 per cent for classes IX-X within five years from 52.26 per cent as in 2005-06 by providing a secondary school within a reasonable distance of every habitation.

The government has allocated Rs 20,120 crore during the 11th Plan for the scheme.

The World Bank may provide soft loans for the scheme, sources said.

As per the provision of the scheme, Centre shall bear 75 per cent of the project expenditure during the 11th five-year plan while states' share will be the remaining 25 per cent.

Sharing pattern will be 50:50 for the 12th five-year plan.

For both the 11th and 12th five-year plans, funding pattern will be 90:10 for North Eastern States.

Apart from improving quality of education at secondary level by making all secondary schools conform to prescribed norms, the scheme also aims at removal of gender, socio-economic and disability barriers and ensuring universal access to secondary level education by 2017 and universal retention by 2020.

It would also provide facilities for estimated additional enrollment of 32.20 lakh children by 2011-12 through strengthening of about 44,000 existing secondary schools, opening 11,188 new secondary schools, appointment of 1.79 lakh additional teachers and construction of 80,500 additional classrooms.

The other interventions are providing infrastructure in schools such as new classrooms with furniture, library, science laboratory, computer room and disabled-friendly provisions.

Besides, more teachers would be recruited with emphasis on science, mathematics and English faculty.

Teachers would be provided in service training along with teaching aids such as ICT and special focus would be given to SC/ST/Minorities girls.

Steps such as priority for opening or upgrading of schools in areas of SC/ST/minority/weaker section concentration and enrollment drives and special coaching classes in these areas are also envisaged under the scheme.

The scheme will be implemented in a Mission mode, with a National Mission headed by the HRD Minister and a project approval board headed by Secretary of School Education and Literacy to appraise and approve state plans.

Similarly, State Missions would be set up under Chief Ministers of the States and the UTs.

The scheme envisages development of state-specific norms.

Each district will be a unit of planning. The district plan will be appraised and consolidated at the state level and the state plan will be appraised by the technical support group attached to the National Mission.

The civil construction will be through School Management and Development Committee with representation from parents, Panchayati Raj Institutions and civil society.

Network Moniters from LG

Electronic giant LG Electronics launched Network Monitors in India. For around Rs 11000 these monitors can reduce the cost of a business establishment significantly.Up to 11 monitors connect to a single host computer, reducing purchasing costs, power consumption and maintenance.

Today's multi-core computers are so powerful that the vast majority of applications use only two to five percent of an average computer's capacity. The revolutionary multi-computing solution from LG enables a single PC to be virtualized so that many users can tap the unused capacity and share it as if each person had an individual computer, without compromising performance, stability or speed. These LG Network monitor, N42 Series directly connect up to 11 users to the same computer. These multi-computing solutions include built-in keyboard, mouse, and audio connections. The monitors connect to a PCI card plugged into the host PC that creates multiple virtual workspaces in conjunction with NComputing vSpace desktop virtualization software.

"This is an ideal solution for small businesses, schools, government offices, libraries and call centers that need to provide computing capabilities but must also consider costs, maintenance and environmental impact," said Mr. Ki Wan Kim, CEO LG Electronics Middle East and Africa. "In a recent independent survey of IT managers, 70 percent of respondents expressed interest in a solution like this if it did not impact system performance."

Maximum Computing, Minimum Cost
LG's Network Monitors offer substantial cost savings compared to traditional PCs and thin clients. These monitors eliminate the need for all users to have individual computes at their desks. And unlike thin clients, they do not need expensive servers that take up valuable space in the datacenter. These monitors deliver uncompromised virtual workspaces for up to 11 users sharing a single host computer at less than $1000 per unit.

Lower Environmental Impact
Beyond being better for balance sheets, LG's Network Monitors are also better for the environment. An average computer draws over 100 watts of power, but LG's revolutionary multi-computing solutions add up to just a few watts (1-5 Watt) per user, greatly lowering power consumption. For instance, for an organization to operate ten desktop computers, it takes more than 1,000 watts of power. Using ten of LG's Network Monitors connected to a single PC only requires about 200 watts of power resulting in electricity savings of 80%. The solution also generates very little heat, reducing demand for air conditioning.

Simple Maintenance Reduces Costs and Downtime
Easier maintenance is another advantage of LG's Network Monitors, which greatly reduce time spent by IT personnel on repairs and software installation. Also, because these monitors can run off of a standard computer, rather than a server, the level of technical expertise required to maintain them is far lower. Further, monitors are much less complex than full-fledged desktop computers, meaning that they are far more reliable. Finally, setup for an array of these monitors is much simpler than for a traditional network.

LG developed its Network Monitors in collaboration with desktop virtualization provider, NComputing, based in Silicon Valley, California. NComputing is the leader in low cost desktop virtualization solutions and was recently honoured at CES with an Innovations 2009 Design and Engineering award.

LG's Network Monitors are compatible with both Microsoft Windows and Linux operating systems. including standard and widescreen aspect ratios, and are designed to fit the needs of a wide range of industries and organizations. The monitors can be driven via the Virtual Desktop Ready connection (RJ-45) or via a standard VGA port for maximum flexibility.