Bhubaneswar, Nov 14 (Reporter) Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Thursday launched the Godavarish Mishra Adarsh Pratya Vidyalaya, aimed at providing quality education to children across the state. Inaugurating the State-level Children's Day Celebration 'Suravi' at the Capital High School campus, Majhi announced that under the Godavarish Mishra Adarsh Pratya Vidyalaya scheme, one modern primary school will be constructed in each panchayat across the state. A total of 6,794 schools will be built. Similar to the Satyabadi Van Vidyalaya, which provided an ideal learning environment, these schools will also aim to create a nurturing environment for children, the Chief Minister said. He highlighted that special emphasis will be placed on developing children's language and basic mathematical skills, enabling them to pursue higher education more easily. Majhi further stated that efforts will be made to strengthen children’s foundational knowledge and intellectual development by focusing on good infrastructure, quality education, and holistic growth. This scheme will include provisions for new classrooms, separate toilets for boys and girls, boundary walls, a green environment, a digital library, language labs, playgrounds, dining halls, computers, and smart boards. Additionally, importance will be placed on sports, physical exercise, and social and cultural education, he added. The Chief Minister also launched the Heritage Schools Scheme, which aims to preserve and restore the state's old schools. Under this scheme, schools that are over 100 years old, or the oldest in each district, will be developed. Efforts will be made to revive their heritage and historical significance, with a total of 51 heritage schools to be restored, Majhi noted. The Chief Minister further announced that the State Government would cover the monthly expenses of hostel boarders at Odisha Model Schools. Of the 314 Odisha Model Schools, 173 have already received Central Government approval for girls' hostels under the Kasturba Gandhi Girls' School Scheme. This scheme provides free accommodation and meals for all students, and the government is working to make the remaining 141 girls' hostels and 314 boys' hostels operational, he added. He mentioned that guidelines were previously issued to collect a monthly food expense of Rs. 2000 from boarders across 455 hostels. However, after listening to parents' requests, it was decided that the government would cover these monthly expenses. Students, therefore, will not need to pay for these expenses, making hostel facilities entirely free for all borders. The state government will allocate Rs. 187.15 crore annually for this initiative, up from the initial cost of Rs. 63.70 crore to run all hostels. Majhi also announced an increase in the mid-day meal cost by Rs. 1 per student. He explained that the Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman Yojana (PM Poshan) is being implemented to provide nutritious, hot-cooked meals to children in government and government-aided schools from classes 1 to 8. This initiative aims to increase student attendance, enroll out-of-school children, and reduce malnutrition. On average, 43 lakh students in over 50,000 primary and upper primary schools in the state are benefiting from this mid-day meal scheme. Currently, the daily cost of rice per primary student is set at Rs. 5.90, and for upper primary students, it is Rs. 8.82. Considering the rising market prices, the government has announced an increase of Rs. 1 per student for the daily rice cost. The Chief Minister concluded, "We will empower children so they can bring pride not only to themselves but also to their villages, state, and country...////...