The Uttar Pradesh government has issued fresh guidelines making newspaper reading mandatory for students in all primary and secondary schools across the state. The decision, taken by the Yogi Adityanath-led government, aims to promote reading habits among students while reducing excessive digital screen time. As part of the initiative, schools have been directed to ensure the availability of Hindi and English newspapers in their libraries.
According to the guidelines, schools must allocate at least 10 minutes every morning for students to read newspapers on the school premises. Students are encouraged to read national, international, and sports-related news. As part of vocabulary development, five difficult words from the newspapers are to be selected daily and displayed on the notice board under a “Word of the Day” activity.
The state government said that regular newspaper reading would enhance students’ general knowledge, critical thinking, and concentration, and would also aid in preparation for competitive examinations. The guidelines further call for creating awareness about fake news among students. In addition, schools have been asked to encourage students to publish their own newspapers and magazines, conduct activities such as crosswords and Sudoku, and motivate primary-level students to prepare scrapbooks using newspaper cuttings.