The Chief Minister's Office of Uttarakhand, on Wednesday, 1 July 2026, shared a statement by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami reaffirming the state government's commitment to ensuring that every child receives quality education rooted in good values — a resolve he framed as central to individual, family, and societal progress.

Context

Speaking on the theme of education, CM Dhami stated: 'Hamara sankalp hai ki sabhi bachchon ko achhe sanskar aur shiksha milni chahiye' ('Our resolve is that all children must receive good values and education'). He added that when a child receives quality schooling, that child contributes not only to improving their own life but also to uplifting their family and society at large. The statement underscores a values-first approach to schooling that has become a hallmark of Uttarakhand's education agenda under his leadership.

Policy Backdrop

Uttarakhand adopted the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 as a guiding framework, aligning state-level curriculum reforms with its emphasis on holistic development, foundational literacy, and the inculcation of moral values alongside academic learning. The policy explicitly links school education to character building — a philosophy that mirrors the sentiment expressed in CM Dhami's statement. Across BJP-governed states, a parallel push for sanskar-based education has gained momentum, particularly as a response to learning gaps that widened during the pandemic years.

Uttarakhand's terrain — a hill state with dispersed populations across remote villages — makes equitable access to quality schooling a persistent administrative challenge. State efforts have included expanding school infrastructure, improving teacher training, and integrating value-education modules into the curriculum to address both academic and developmental outcomes.

Stakeholders and Impact

The primary beneficiaries of this policy direction are school-age children, particularly those in rural and semi-urban pockets of Uttarakhand where access to quality teaching has historically been uneven. Families in the state's hill districts stand to gain if the government's resolve translates into sustained budget allocations and on-ground programme delivery. Civil society groups working on foundational literacy and early childhood education have long argued that value-based schooling, when implemented well, yields measurable gains in community cohesion and intergenerational mobility.

The framing of education as a tool for collective uplift — family and society, not just the individual — also signals an intent to pitch public schooling as a social investment rather than a purely personal one, potentially widening enrolment drives in underserved communities.

What's Next

Observers will watch the Uttarakhand state budget for allocations directed at school infrastructure, teacher recruitment, and value-education curriculum rollouts in the coming academic year. Whether CM Dhami's stated resolve is backed by specific scheme announcements or legislative action will determine how this commitment moves from rhetoric to policy. The broader national conversation around NEP 2020 implementation gives the Uttarakhand government a ready institutional framework to anchor new initiatives, making the next budget cycle a key indicator of intent.