Narendra Modi's Primary School to Become 'Inspirational Centre'; Students to Visit From Across India

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first school in his hometown in Mehsana’s Vadnagar in Gujarat will be developed as a model school called “Prerna” and will host two students from each district in India as part of a week-long study tour, the Indian Express reported.

The school will be developed as an “inspirational” school called ‘Prerna: The Vernacular School’, where students will be trained on “how to live a very evolved life”, as part of a joint initiative by the Union and state governments, the

The students will visit the school in batches of 30, with the Union culture ministry bearing the cost of transport and accommodation. “There are 750 districts in India and two children from each district (will be sent)… we will train a total of 1,500 children in the entire year on how to live a very evolved life…We want the first batch out in the current year itself,” said a senior official.

The late 19th century school, which was functional till 2018, has been restored by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) as part of a mega redevelopment plan for Vadnagar, officials said.

The school, which has only eight classrooms, has been renovated to emulate what the original structure may have looked like by using ‘vernacular elements’. The campus will also consist of a cafe, orientation centre, souvenir shop and a community green space, the Indian Express report said.

The concept note for the project states: “Great leaders across the world have acknowledged their first school as a catalyst in their inspirational journey to cause change… Based on the vision of the Prime Minister, this first of its kind school redevelopment project ‘Prerna’ is being undertaken to inspire the youth of the county to become catalysts of change… It is envisioned to be a school of the future but with an impetus to education and values, imparted using various techniques and technologies.”

In addition to the school, the Union culture ministry and the Gujarat government and also developing an archaeological museum that will showcase the town’s development through the lens of seven cultural periods in a span of 2,500 years, the Hindu reported.

The museum, which is expected to be completed by October 2023, will cost Rs 200 crore to the Union Ministry of Culture, the report said.