No classes for Plus 2 students in Bihar colleges from April 1, Education Department releases notice

Patna: The Education Department of the Bihar government has issued a notification stating that intermediate classes (plus two) held in colleges affiliated to various universities in the state will be discontinued. While such classes had been stopped in Patna University about a decade ago, the same will now be ceased at colleges falling under other universities from the academic session starting in April this year. 

According to a recent notification, intermediate education in all three streams - arts, science, and commerce - will now be imparted only in higher secondary schools from the new session. The delinking of intermediate (plus two) from colleges has been recommended in the Universities Act, but this has not been enforced until now due to inadequate infrastructure and manpower in higher secondary schools. However, the resolution has already been notified in the state gazette. 

In 2007, the Nitish Kumar government had decided to phase out intermediate education from colleges to conform to the National Education Policy (1986/92) and had introduced a 10+2 format in plus two. The notification states that the department has already developed a large-scale infrastructure and recruited 67,961 teachers for higher secondary schools and another 65,737 teachers for secondary schools under a special drive. As a result, the government schools are now equipped to handle plus two education. 

The Bihar government had also taken a policy decision earlier to have one higher secondary school in every panchayat and to upgrade the existing secondary schools. 

(With Inputs from PTI)