Jammu and Kashmir to adopt the ‘Nadakkavu model’ for its school

Development project to be first taken up at Government Higher Secondary School for Girls at Kothibagh, Srinagar

The Government Vocational Higher Secondary School for Girls at Nadakkavu in Kozhikode. The gate and the arch seen in the picture were part of the developments under the PRISM project. | Photo Credit: K. Ragesh

The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir is the latest to adopt the ‘Nadakkavu model’ in developing its schools. The government of Jammu and Kashmir has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Faizal and Shabana Foundation, one of the key players in the developing the Government Vocational Higher Secondary School (GVHSS) for Girls at Nadakkavu in Kozhikode to international standards.

The development of GVHSS Nadakkavu was carried out under the project PRISM (Promoting Regional Schools to International Standards through Multiple Intervention), under the leadership of then MLA of Kozhikode North, A. Pradeep Kumar. He conceived the project and mobilised support of potential players, including the Faizal and Shabana Foundation that spent nearly ₹20 crore on it.

Prestigious institutions such as the Indian Space Research Organisation, Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode, and the National Institute of Technology, Calicut, were directly involved in the implementation of the project at various levels. When the school was launched after five years of renovation, it had world-class amenities such as well-equipped science labs, high-tech classrooms, computer labs, IT room, spacious dining room with a capacity to accommodate around 2,500 persons, staff rooms, gymnasium, an indoor stadium with separate basketball, volleyball and badminton courts, and astro-turf hockey and football grounds.

After the success of the Nadakkavu model, the PRISM project was introduced in several other government schools in Kerala. In Jammu and Kashmir, the project will be first introduced at Government Higher Secondary School for Girls at Kothibagh, Srinagar.

Faizal Kottikollon, chairman of the foundation, said the objective of the project was to establish the school as a centre of educational excellence that could serve as a blueprint for other schools across Jammu and Kashmir. The foundation will fund the project and assume responsibility for its implementation, including the holistic development of the school. It will also collaborate with Indian and international institutions to conduct training programmes for the school’s teachers and students.

Over 1,200 government schools, mainly in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, have adopted the Nadakkavu model within 10 years of its inception. The model has also been introduced in a few schools in West Africa, according to the foundation.