Bhubaneswar, Aug. 31: Students of Classes I to VII will get free access to digitised textbooks.

The government will also introduce an app for the e-books. As most of the high schools have been connected with computer networks under the Rashtriya Madhyamik Sikshya Abhiyan, the computer teacher posted in those schools will facilitate as to how the students get access to the digitised textbooks, sources said.

The state government has also decided to create a digital library of all high school classes.

The general administration department's special secretary A.K.K. Meena said: 'We have sent the proceedings of the collectors' workshop held from June 11 to 13 to secretaries to all departments and revenue divisional commissioners for necessary action last week.'

The move comes in the backdrop of a recommendation by a collectors' committee. The panel has already submitted its report to the state government.

Official sources said the government would introduce smart classes in at least one high school and the Industrial Training Institute in each district on a pilot basis, based on the panel's recommendations.

'The government will also develop the high school students' soft skill component beyond the spoken English, basic computer and the Internet skills,' said a senior government official.

According to the recommendation, a working group of the revenue, IT, higher education, school and mass education, skill development and the technical education departments would be formed.

'We will use the Students Academic Management System (Sams) portal to track their performance from the upper primary level to Class XII as well as the ITI level. The government will also introduce digi-lockers for accessing documents such as certificates issued by the college and school authorities concerned,' the official said.

The state government has also taken up the collector committee's recommendation to link web portals of respective schools with the central portal.

'At present, we have already been provided with the CDs for mathematics, geography, science and history. We take computer classes and give access to students to these subjects along with the regular classes on these subjects,' said Mitanjali Pradhan, a schoolteacher.

All institutions above the high school level will also have facilities to access career counselling websites, and a system will be put in place to guide the students to various specialised institutions.

In order to address the lack of standardisation in classroom teaching and learning, the government will also introduce a tele-education system.

'Tele-education needs to be adopted in order to address unavailability of requisite category of teachers at some places with better teachers available elsewhere,' said the official .

It will evaluate institutions to provide grant-in-aid and set up co-ordination committees at district levels, involving the collector, to manage affairs of higher education institutions according to their need.

'Education establishments will be linked with technology to take feedback from students on all entitlements to ensure delivery in a transparent way with a line to e-Abhijog and develop a platform where the Directorate of Technical Education and Training and Skill Development Mission and the higher education department can converge,' said a senior official.

Alongside textbooks, the government will also completely digitise libraries and the State Archives.