NEW DELHI: AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday challenged the BJP to compare 1,000 government schools each in Punjab and Gujarat, claiming that Punjab’s education system had improved significantly under the AAP government.Kejriwal said he would provide a list of 1,000 schools in Punjab and asked the BJP to identify a similar number of schools in Gujarat for a joint inspection. He also suggested that the exercise be covered by the media.“I challenge the BJP: You have been in power in Gujarat for 30 years, and we have been in power in Punjab for four and a half years. I will give you a list of 1,000 schools in Punjab, and you give us a list of 1,000 schools in Gujarat. Let us inspect these schools together and see which ones are better,” he said in a video message.Kejriwal also accused the BJP of using “doctored, AI videos” to target Punjab’s government schools instead of focusing on improving schools in states where it is in power.He claimed that of Punjab’s around 19,700 government schools, work had transformed about 19,200, while improvements were underway in the remaining 500.“Within just four and a half years, we have made the schools of Punjab so good,” Kejriwal said, adding that the remaining schools would be improved within the next one-and-a-half to two years.He said Punjab was ranked 28th in 2022, when the AAP came to power, but had since witnessed a significant turnaround in school education.Kejriwal credited the improvement to teachers, principals, parents and students, saying the transformation was a collective effort by the people of Punjab.
