New Delhi, Jul 6 (PTI) State-owned e-governance entity CSC SPV plans to open 700 ICT-enabled pre-schools 'Bal Vidyalayas' by March, and in every block, by the end of the next year, the organisation said on Monday.

CSC e-Governance Services India Limited, also called CSC SPV, on Monday started 21 Bal Vidyalayas across 10 states -- Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.

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"CSC aims to open 700 Bal Vidyalayas, one in every district across the country, by the end of current financial year and then expand it to every block by the end of 2021. The launch of Bal Vidyalaya will be a new chapter in the CSC ecosystem. These students will play a significant role in nation building and further promoting digital inclusion," CSC SPV Chief Executive Officer Dinesh Tyagi said in a statement.

There are around 3 lakh common service centres across the country that provide e-governance services to people in small towns and rural India.

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"We started the concept of Bal Vidyalaya to bridge the digital divide in rural areas. CSC's foundation is education, so we wanted to help cognitive development of children at the nascent stage," Tyagi said.

CSC SPV Chief Operating Officer Rishikesh Patankar said the CSC Bal Vidyalaya is information and communication technology (ICT)-enabled education for school children.

"With this initiative, CSC Academy is starting a new journey. Here, we will focus on learning by doing. We will encourage activity-based learning," Patankar said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)