New Delhi, Jan 8: The setting up of 100 new Sainik Schools will provide an opportunity to girls to join the armed forces and contribute to national security,” said Defence Minister Rajnath Singh while chairing a webinar on Sainik Schools on Saturday.

Rajnath Singh said, the Government believes in increasing the role of women in the Armed Forces and a series of steps have been taken in that direction, including clearing the way for admission of girls in Sainik Schools and providing Permanent Commission to women officers. He exuded confidence the decision to establish new Sainik schools will encourage girls to realise their dreams of serving the country.

The Defence Minister described the announcement of expansion of Sainik Schools as one of the many important decisions taken by the government in the last six-seven years to improve the quality of basic education of children and ensure holistic development of the country. He hoped that the amalgamation of Raksha and Shikshain Sainik schools will play an important role in nation-building in the times to come. He stated that while ‘Sainik’ signifies unity, discipline & devotion, ‘School’ is the centre of education, therefore, Sainik Schools are playing a pivotal role in making children capable citizens.

Rajnath Singh added that the Government is focusing on providing quality education to the youth of the country as it lays a solid foundation for the all-round development of society. “Quality education is the fourth of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals adopted by the United Nations. There are several other goals under ‘quality education’. It has been our strong political commitment to achieve these goals. Several schemes like Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan are being run. Setting up of 100 new Sainik Schools is another important step in that direction,” he said.

The Defence Minister lauded the Sainik School Society for implementing the ideals of visionaries such as Swami Vivekananda, Mahatma Gandhi, Dr BR Ambedkar and Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan who had emphasised on physical, mental, moral and spiritual development of children along with academic education. He appreciated the fact that Sainik Schools have contributed to the recruitment of more than 7,000 officers in the Armed Forces so far and have given the country officers like former Chiefs of the Army Staff General Deepak Kapoor (Retd) & General Dalbir Singh Suhag (Retd), besides Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio; former RBI Governor D Subbarao and Film Director Rakesh Roshan.