Jharkhand Education Project Council (JEPC) will soon conduct special classes for out-of-school students of class 1 to 8 in small groups in a bid to prepare them for regular classes and help them cope with academic pressure, officials said on Sunday.

The JEPC has addressed letters to officials of all the 24 districts in Jharkhand, directing them to make arrangements for the classes and ensure availability of teachers. “We have already mapped the out-of-school students and prepared a list of students who may require extra tuition in order to resume classes at schools,” said JEPC programme director Binita Tirkey.

These classes, Tirkey said, will be held at school campuses and not more than 30 students will be enrolled for each class. Districts have been asked to rope in retired government school teachers for taking these classes, which the government refers to as Setu Guide. The teachers, JEPC officials said, would be paid Rs 500 per month for each student they teach as a part of this campaign.

As per data compiled by JEPC, there are about 6 lakh out-of-school students in Jharkhand and close to 2 lakh of them require extra tuitions in order to resume regular classes. These special classes, Tirkey said, will be held after school hours and on weekends in order to ensure attendance.

“Private school students in need of tuition can also avail the benefits of this campaign,” said Tirkey.

As per government data, there are over 42 lakh students studying in classes 1 to 12 in about 35,000 government schools across the state. The special classes, however, will only be conducted for students of class 1 to 8 as of now, officials said.

“Many dropouts never return to school as they fail to cope with academic pressure. This initiative is likely to help such students resume studies and pursue their dreams,” said Anjana Kumari, a teacher at a government school in Ranchi.

JEPC officials said that rooms in school campuses or close to the schools can also be used for these classes. Only students staying close to a particular school will be enlisted for the classes being conducted there, officials added.

“The next session is likely to begin in four months. Hopefully, the students who attend special classes will be able to attend regular classes at schools by then,” said Tirkey.

Many students also dropped out of school during the Covid-19 pandemic, and bringing them back to school was one of the priorities of the JEPC. The special classes for out-of-school students will also help JEPC achieve its target of bringing “Covid dropouts” back to school.