Assam Introduces New School Management Committee Guidelines for All Government Schools

Guwahati: The Assam government has introduced a new framework for School Management Committees (SMCs) to strengthen community participation and improve governance in government and provincialised schools across the state.

The Department of School Education has issued revised guidelines governing the constitution, roles and responsibilities of SMCs in all government and provincialised Lower Primary, Upper Primary, Secondary and Senior Secondary schools. The notification supersedes all previous orders and instructions related to School Management Committees.

The revised framework has been prepared in accordance with the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the Samagra Shiksha 2.0 framework.

Under the new guidelines, every school must constitute an SMC within one month of the commencement of the academic session. The government has also directed that School Management Committees be formed in all secondary and senior secondary schools, replacing the existing School Management Development Committees (SMDCs).

The SMCs will play a central role in promoting decentralised school governance and encouraging greater community participation in the functioning and development of schools.

The committees will comprise school officials, parents or guardians, representatives of local authorities, academicians, subject experts, school alumni and members from disadvantaged sections of society.

The size of the committees will vary depending on student enrolment. Schools with up to 100 students will have 12-15 members, those with 100-500 students will have 15-20 members, while schools with more than 500 students will have 20-25 members.

According to the notification, the revised guidelines are aimed at strengthening accountability, improving school-level governance and aligning Assam's education system with the vision of the National Education Policy 2020 through greater community participation.

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