Bengaluru, 30 May

Buoyed by the tremendous performance of students of the Karnataka Residential Educational Institutions Society (KREIS) run schools in class 10 board examination, the State government has vowed to upgrade these schools on par with the sophisticated private schools.

Established to impart quality education to the economically and socially backward communities, these schools hogged the limelight on 9 May when the SSLC results were out and Ankita Basappa Konnur of the Morarji Desai Residential School at Mudhol in Bagalkot district emerged as a topper by securing 625 out of 625 marks.

Ankita is the only student to get cent per cent marks in all subjects this year. She belongs to a humble background as her father Basappa Konnur is a farmer and her mother is a homemaker.

"As part of the continuation of this magnanimous performance of social welfare department schools, I have decided to make sure that all our government schools are upgraded on par with the most sophisticated ones," state Social Welfare Minister HC Mahadevappa said.

According to official sources, there are 833 residential schools in Karnataka named after Morarji Desai, Kittur Rani Chennamma, BR Ambedkar, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Indira Gandhi, Masti Venkatesh Ayyangar and Ekalavya. The KREIS also manages pre-university colleges. -PTI