A sip of water at a government school in Kurukshetra took Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini back to his own school days — and forward to a ₹400 crore pledge to build 150 new school buildings across the state. Visiting Rajkiya Varishth Madhyamik Vidyalaya, Kanipala in Kurukshetra district on Thursday, September 24, Saini used the moment to frame his government's education agenda in deeply personal terms.

From Kanipala's Classrooms to IIT and MBBS Halls

Saini posted in Hindi: 'Rajkiya Varishth Madhyamik Vidyalaya, Kanipala mein aaj paani peete hue apne school ke din yaad aa gaye' — ('Drinking water at the government school in Kanipala today brought back memories of my own school days'). The imagery was deliberate: a sitting Chief Minister reconnecting with the same public-school system he now governs.

At the centre of that system is the Super-100 programme, Haryana's flagship scheme that identifies meritorious students in government schools and provides them structured coaching for IIT-JEE and NEET — the fiercely competitive gateways to engineering and medical colleges. Saini pointed to the programme's graduates: some now engineers, some doctors, others representing Haryana and India on the sporting field.

₹400 Crore to Build 150 New School Blocks

The visit was not just symbolic. Saini announced that his government is actively constructing 150 new school buildings at a total outlay of ₹400 crore — an infrastructure push aimed at closing the visible gap between government and private schools in the state. Crumbling classrooms and inadequate facilities have long been cited as reasons families shift children to costlier private alternatives, draining enrolment from the public system.

Haryana's effort to reverse that trend has been building since 2014, with successive BJP administrations investing in school upgrades, mid-day meal quality, and competitive-exam coaching. The Super-100 scheme sits at the sharper end of that push — selecting the most capable students and giving them the preparation that was once available only to those who could afford private coaching institutes.

The Bigger Bet: Social Mobility Through State Schools

What Saini is articulating is a specific theory of change: that world-class outcomes — IIT seats, MBBS admissions, national sports medals — can be produced from government-school pipelines if the infrastructure and coaching support are in place. It is a politically resonant argument in a state where rural families still overwhelmingly depend on public education.

'Sarkari schoolon se nikalne wala har baccha apne sapnon ki oonchi udaan bhare — yahi hamara sankalp hai,' Saini wrote — ('Every child who emerges from a government school should soar to the heights of their dreams — this is our resolve'). The resolve now has a rupee figure and a construction timeline attached to it.

The real test will come in the next IIT-JEE and NEET cycles, when Super-100's latest cohort sits the exams — and in whether those 150 buildings rise on schedule across Haryana's districts.