Chandigarh, April 9: The Punjab government has launched a state-wide attendance tracking system that will provide daily SMS alerts to parents of over 25 lakh students enrolled in government schools. The initiative, introduced under the next phase of the “Sikhya Kranti” (education revolution), was unveiled on Thursday by Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains and AAP leader Manish Sisodia during the launch of Mission Samrath 4.0.
Under the new system, parents will receive a confirmation message stating their ward has reached school safely, while any absence will trigger an immediate notification. The policy includes a tiered follow-up protocol where a seven-day absence will prompt a district-level contact with the family. If a student remains absent for more than 15 days, the matter will be flagged directly to the state headquarters for intervention.
Minister Bains affirmed that the tracking system is designed to ensure learning continuity and enhance classroom accountability. He stated that the state’s education budget was increased to ₹19,279 crore for the 2026-27 cycle to ensure that resources are utilized directly for student outcomes. The minister noted that Punjab has already surpassed national averages in foundational learning, particularly in grades 3 and 6, and is now focusing on maintaining its top rank in the national PARAKH survey.
Manish Sisodia maintained that the real-time reassurance provided to parents is a significant step toward transparency in public education. During the event, officials also released a compendium of 38 proven classroom practices developed by local teachers to be scaled across the state’s 19,000 schools. The government asserted that this data-driven approach will help identify students requiring additional support and ensure no child falls below the foundational learning line.
