Scheme for Providing Education to Madrasas/ Minorities (SPEMM)

Scheme for Providing Education to Madrasas/ Minorities (SPEMM)

Subject :Government schemes

• The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Social Justice and Empowerment recently pulled up the Union government for the delay in approving the continuation of the Scheme for Providing Education to Madrasas/Minorities (SPEMM), which provides for financial assistance to madrasas and minority institutes..

About Scheme for Providing Education to Madrasas/ Minorities (SPEMM):

• The scheme has two sub-schemes –
• the Scheme for Providing Quality Education in Madrasas (SPQEM) and
• Infrastructure Development of Minority Institutes (IDMI).
• The scheme is being implemented at the national level.
• Both the schemes are voluntary in nature.

Implementation:

• Department of School Education and Literacy is implementing the Umbrella Scheme for Providing Quality Education to Madrasas/Minorities (SPEMM).
• The scheme was transferred from the Ministry of Minority Affairs to the Ministry of Education in 2021.

Scheme for Providing Quality Education in Madrasas (SPQEM):

• To provide financial assistance to traditional institutions like Madrasas and Maktabs to encourage them to introduce Science, Mathematics, Social Studies, Hindi and English in their curriculum so that academic proficiency for classes I-XII is attainable for children studying in these institutions.
• To strengthen State Madrasa Boards opting for assistance by enabling them to monitor the Madrasa modernization programme and enhance awareness about education among the Muslim community.
• To provide quality components in Madrasas such as remedial teaching, assessment and enhancement of learning outcomes, Rashtriya Avishkar Abhiyan etc.
• To provide in-service training of teachers appointed under the scheme for teaching modern subjects of Science, Mathematics, Social Studies, Hindi and English to improve their pedagogical skills and quality of teaching.

Infrastructure Development of Minority Institutes (IDMI):

• Infrastructure Development of Minority Institutes (IDMI) has been operationalised to augment Infrastructure in Private Aided/Unaided Minority Schools/Institutions in order to enhance the quality of education to minority children.
• The salient features of IDMI scheme are:
• To facilitate education of minorities by augmenting and strengthening school infrastructure in Minority Institutions (elementary/ secondary/senior secondary schools) in order to expand the facilities for formal education to children of minority communities.
• To encourage educational facilities for girls, children with special needs and those who are most deprived educationally amongst the minorities.