NETWORKING WITH NATIONAL AGENCIES

The West Bengal Board of Primary Education has become a member of the Council of Boards of School Education (COBSE) in India. A brief profile of the Board was duly despatched to COBSE and paper on Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation prepared by Dr. Sulapani Bhattacharya, President was sent to the conference of the General Body of COBSE.
It is heartening to note that the Board is gradually extending its network with other educational bodies at the national level. A number of Project Proposals sent to the Department of Measurement and Evaluation, NCERT were accepted by the Department and were approved for implementation by the Regional Institute of Education, Bhubaneswar under the aegis of the State Coordination Committee, involving participants from West Bengal. Training of Teachers in Research Methodology, Science Teaching in Primary Schools are a few to mention where teachers/teacher-educators from West Bengal participated. Dr. Sarala Rajput in a letter to Board conveyed her Departments' willingness to shoulder the responsibility of holding some surveys.
The West Bengal Board of Primary Education is possibly the only Board that could cater to the requirement as per Supreme Court's verdict, for study of environmental sciences within its curricular area. The President of the Board on being invited by the Director, NCERT participated in the national level conference recently held in New Delhi.

NETWORKING WITH THE INTERNATIONAL AGENCIES

UNICEF, Kolkata has offered support for (i) Manpower, (ij) Mobility, (iii) Management of Information, (iv) Monitoring and (v) Media and Documentation necessary for functions and working of Primary School Sanitation and Hygiene Education Cell established within the Board in November'05 basically with a view to looking after the use, maintenance and sustainability of the toilets and drinking water facilities provided in the primary schools by the Government through its various departments and under Sarba Siksha Abhijan.
The representatives of the Department for International Development (DFID), U.K. pays occasional visits to the Board basically to discuss the progress of the on-going programme of interventions known as District Primary Education Programme. The Board has so far played crucial role in collaboration with the Paschim Banga Rajya Prarambhik Siksha Unnayan Sanstha for effective implementation of WBDPEP.
The European Commission with its Sector Investment Programme has already started supporting the Primary School Health Progrmme and is full of appreciation for the type of Programme which is unique in nature in whole of India.