AHMEDABAD: The Gujarat government on Wednesday launched a statewide campaign to bring more than 80,000 school dropouts back to classrooms, with Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel saying the initiative aims to achieve “zero dropouts” and ensure that no child is left behind in the education system.Launching the ‘Samras Vidya Setu’ mega-campaign from Ahmedabad, Patel said Gujarat’s school dropout rate had come down to two percent under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership and the state had now identified more than 80,000 school dropouts.The government plans to re-enroll them in age-appropriate classes from standards 1 to 12 with academic support to help them bridge learning gaps.Patel said district lists of school dropouts across Gujarat had been prepared and teachers, local public representatives and community leaders would jointly reach out to parents to encourage them to send their children to school.“Each child will be admitted to the appropriate class according to their age, while special academic support and bridging learning arrangements have been made for children who have fallen behind in their studies,” he said.Emphasizing the need for cooperation between schools and families, Patel said that Gujarat had become one of the country’s top destinations for business and employment and that quality education was essential for the youth to benefit from these opportunities.He urged parents to ensure regular school attendance and said the goal of “zero dropout” could only be achieved through the combined efforts of the government, parents, teachers and society.Patel also highlighted the role of teachers in preventing student dropouts, saying they closely monitor attendance and do personal follow-up when necessary.“If a child remains absent from school for two consecutive days, the teacher visits the child’s home to understand the reason for the absence,” he said.The chief minister said improvements in the quality of education in government and municipal schools had encouraged many families to shift their children from private institutions to government schools.He commended the teachers and staff of the education department for their efforts and said that strengthening the education system would help prepare the youth of Gujarat to benefit from growing business and investment opportunities while contributing to the vision of ‘Viksit Bharat 2047’.Education Minister Pradyuman Vaja described the campaign as “not just a government program but a people’s movement to ensure every child’s right to education.”“The state government had introduced several measures to improve the quality of education, including Mission schools of excellence, smart classrooms, modern educational infrastructure and student-centric programmes, which had strengthened public confidence in government schools,” he said.Referring to the National Education Policy 2020, Vaja said: “The campaign would focus on identifying children who have dropped out of school, re-enrol them, maintain regular contact with parents, conduct home visits, provide counseling and organize bridging courses to help them return to regular education.”He said the success of the campaign would depend on the active participation of teachers, school management committees, district and taluka administrations, Group Resource Center (CRC) and Block Resource Center (BRC) coordinators, voluntary organizations, community leaders, public representatives and local communities.“Districts, teachers and School Management Committees that act exceptionally during the campaign will be honored on Teacher’s Day,” he added.Minister of State for Education Rivaba Jadeja said the government had launched the initiative with a commitment that “no child in Gujarat will be deprived of education”.He said that public representatives, voluntary organizations, citizens and all sectors of society should contribute to the success of the campaign.“The Shala Praveshotsav and Kanya Kelavani initiatives launched by Narendra Modi during his tenure as Gujarat Chief Minister had transformed the education sector in the state,” he said.He said the government was using mechanisms such as the early tracking system, the child tracking system, bridging courses, remedial classes and residential schools to bring back children who had dropped out of the education system.He also called for collective efforts to promote girl child education and ensure quality, value-based and skill-oriented learning. Principal Secretary (Education) Milind Torawane delivered the welcome address and outlined the program of the event.During the programme, the Chief Minister felicitated the teachers for their efforts in re-enrolling the school dropouts and recognized organizations that had provided educational materials and other academic support to the students studying in public schools.