Rayagada in Odisha has taken a giant leap towards infrastructure building and promoting proper learning for students from the marginalised sections of society. The district administration of Rayagada has launched a special education initiation, BaLA—Building as Learning Aid—recently across state-run sevashrams and residential schools meant only for SC and ST students.

With more than 65,000 students enrolled in more than 130 sevashrams in the district, the BaLA project aims at making learning a fun-filled experience by utilizing the physical infrastructure of the schools themselves as teaching aids. Emphasis has been laid on enhancing the learning environment and experiences so that students study in a more congenial atmosphere.

The BaLA intervention integrates some innovative pedagogies and creative use of school infrastructure, focusing on enhancing the quality of education. It is and could be targeted to surmount difficulties that exist about inculcating a supportive and enriching learning experience for SC/ST students. This initiative would, in turn, strive to meet the larger objectives of reducing school dropouts and increasing educational outcomes in the district.

The Rayagada administration, through investing in special education projects such as BaLA, envisions an inclusive and equitable education system that answers the different needs of Rayagada’s students.

Launching the special education project in Sevashrams and schools of Rayagada is a commitment to quality education with necessary help for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Students by Rayagada Administration. The Project will enhance the learning experience by using the physical infrastructure of the school as learning aids and create an enabling learning environment in which students’ academic performance is improved; hence, reducing the dropout rate of children in the district.

This BaLA project definitely has the most potential to promote Inclusive Education and help fulfill the ideals of ‘Equity’ by providing equality of opportunities to all sections of children, especially children from the most marginalized communities. This has been the earnest effort of the Rayagada administration to come up with a meaningful response for the educational needs of SC and ST children and offer them a very supportive and enriching learning environment.

Consequently, this project is going to leave its impact on the reformed educational landscape of Rayagada, make it inclusive, just, and empower students for a prosperous future.