The Uttar Pradesh government has made daily newspaper reading mandatory in all secondary and basic primary schools in an effort to strengthen reading habits and reduce excessive screen time among students. A government order issued on December 23 by the Additional Chief Secretary for Secondary and Basic Education outlines a structured plan requiring schools to dedicate at least 10 minutes during morning assemblies exclusively to newspaper reading. Under the directive, students will take turns reading major national, international, sports and editorial news, while school libraries have been instructed to keep both Hindi and English newspapers available.
To further improve language proficiency, schools will also implement a daily “word of the day” exercise. Five challenging words selected from newspapers will be displayed on notice boards to help students enhance vocabulary, comprehension and articulation. Officials believe the initiative will not only build communication skills but also improve students’ ability to identify misinformation and develop critical thinking and social awareness.
The government has encouraged schools to expand the activity through related engagements such as publishing school newspapers or magazines, conducting editorial-based writing tasks and group discussions for Classes 9 to 12, organising crossword and Sudoku competitions, and encouraging younger students to prepare scrapbooks using news clippings. These activities, officials say, are expected to boost creativity, analytical skills and collaborative learning among students.
This directive builds on an earlier order issued on November 2, when the state launched a comprehensive reading campaign to promote book-reading and curb children’s dependence on mobile phones and social media. As part of that campaign, students were given access to district libraries, required to borrow at least one non-syllabus book every week, and given appreciation certificates for consistent reading. Schools were also asked to adopt a “No Bouquet, Only Book” practice, encouraging the gifting of books instead of bouquets at school events.
Both orders have been circulated to divisional education officials, district inspectors of schools and basic education officers, with instructions to ensure uniform implementation across Uttar Pradesh. With these measures, the government aims to cultivate a strong reading culture and nurture a generation of well-informed, critically aware students who rely more on books and newspapers than on screens.
