The Karnataka government has given the green light to a significant initiative aimed at revitalising school education in the state's Kalyana Karnataka region. In a major move, the state will upgrade 200 government schools into fully-equipped Karnataka Public Schools (KPS). This decision was formalised through an official government order dated November 29.
Transforming Education in Kalyana Karnataka
This ambitious project will be executed under the Akshara Avishkara scheme over the next two years, from 2025 to 2027. The selected schools, which will act as magnet institutions, are spread across seven districts in the Kalyana Karnataka area. The core vision is to develop them into integrated campuses offering seamless education from Lower Kindergarten (LKG) all the way to Pre-University College (PUC). The primary goals are to enhance the quality of learning and significantly reduce student dropout rates.
To put this expansion in context, the KPS model was first introduced in the 2018-19 academic year with 176 schools. It has since grown to include 309 KPS schools statewide, currently educating approximately 2.8 lakh (280,000) students. The state's latest budget for 2025-26 had initially announced the conversion of 50 schools to the KPS model, to which this new order adds another 150, bringing the total new conversions to 200 focused on Kalyana Karnataka.
Selection Criteria and Infrastructure Development
The government has set specific criteria for selecting schools for this transformation. Priority will be given to government schools with the highest admission numbers. Furthermore, the schools must have a minimum campus area of one acre in rural locations and half an acre in urban areas.
Under the scheme, a key strategy involves merging other government schools located within a 1 to 5-kilometre radius of the selected KPS. The consolidated campus will operate under a single UDISE code—an 11-digit unique identification number used for educational data collection across India. Each new KPS is envisioned to host at least 1,200 students on a single, well-equipped campus.
The government has committed substantial resources for this upgrade, planning to spend between Rs 2 crore to Rs 4 crore per school. This investment will fund:
- Construction of new classrooms.
- Development of smart learning environments.
- Creation of safe and student-friendly infrastructure.
Broader Impact on Karnataka's Education Landscape
The expansion of the KPS model is a direct response to its proven success. By providing education from pre-school to PUC under one roof, the system has already demonstrated its effectiveness in improving learning quality and reducing enrolment drops at critical transition stages—primary, secondary, and PUC.
Karnataka's public education system is vast, comprising a total of 47,493 government schools and PU colleges. This breakdown includes:
- 19,603 primary schools
- 21,676 higher primary schools
- 4,895 high schools
- 1,319 PU colleges
The phased development of these 200 new KPS schools in Kalyana Karnataka represents a targeted effort to bring the benefits of integrated, quality education to a key region, aiming to set a new benchmark for government schooling in the state.
