New Govt. will go ahead with tab project; laptops during the second phase
View(s):The Education Ministry is to go ahead with the previous government’s controversial project of providing tabs to students as a pilot project, but with some changes, a senior Education Ministry official said.
He said that initially they were going ahead with the purchase of 27,000 tabs as already orders had been placed.
However, they were looking to introduce changes such as importing laptops instead of tabs during the second phase of the project.
The tabs will be distributed to 1,000 schools which has computer labs and IT facilities to improve their facilities. Some of the teachers and Teacher Training Centres will be provided with the tabs.
He said any cancellation of the order for the 27,000 tabs would cause legal implications as well and therefore the ministry had decided to go ahead with the plan.
Meanwhile, former Education Minister Akila Viraj Kariyawasam told the Education Times that since the previous Government had already allocated Rs four billion for the project, it was better to go ahead with the plan which would be beneficial to the students.
He said the implementation of the project was delayed as he had to submit as many as 13 cabinet papers amidst obstacles from former President Maithripala Sirisena.
The project was initially launched keeping with a promise given by the former UNF government in 2015. (DW)