Ahmedabad, Feb 17 (IANS): Gautam Adani, the Chairperson of the Adani Group, on Monday announced the building of world-class Schools of Excellence across India, making quality education affordable and accessible to all.
With an initial donation of Rs 2,000 crore from the Adani family, the partnership will prioritise making world-class education and learning infrastructure affordable to people from all strata of society.
Announcing the Adani Foundation’s partnership with GEMS Education, an international network of award-winning K-12 schools, Gautam Adani said the first such school will open in Lucknow in the academic year 2025-26.
"Proud to announce @AdaniFoundation’s partnership with @GEMSEducation, a global leader in K-12 education. Together, we will build world-class Adani GEMS Schools of Excellence across India, making quality education affordable and accessible to all," the Adani Group Chairperson posted on X social media platform.
He further stated that in these schools, 30 per cent of seats in the CBSE curriculum will be free for underprivileged children.
“The first school opens in Lucknow in 2025-26, with 20 schools planned in 3 years. Together, we will help to shape the future - one student at a time," said Gautam Adani, adding that "service is meditation, service is prayer, and service is God".
The pledge is part of the Rs 10,000 crore social donation recently announced by the Adani Group. The company earlier announced Rs 6,000 crore towards building Adani Health Cities (AHCs) in partnership with US-based Mayo Clinic, and Rs 2,000 crore to build a skilled talent pipeline for serving industries across the spectrum with ITE Education Services (ITEES) of Singapore.
The partnership will give rise to best-in-class research institutions focused on developing teaching competencies supported by innovation and capability development.
Over the next three years, at least 20 such schools in the K-12 segment will be rolled out across India’s primary metropolitan cities and, subsequently, also in Tier II to IV cities.
In these schools, 30 per cent of seats in the CBSE curriculum will be free for under-served and deserving children.
Leveraging the Adani Group’s pan-Indian presence and extensive infrastructure capabilities and also GEMS' educational expertise, the partnership plans to develop a scalable, affordable and sustainable model for quality education for students across India.
"This initiative reflects our commitment to making world-class education affordable and widely accessible," said Gautam Adani.
"By adopting global best practices and innovative digital learning through our partnership with GEMS Education, we aim to equip the next generation of change-makers to become socially responsible leaders in India," the billionaire industrialist added.
According to Sunny Varkey, Founder and Chairman of GEMS Education, their vision has always been to make quality education accessible to every learner, regardless of their socio-economic background.
"The collaboration with the Adani Foundation will strengthen us to expand our reach and impact, bringing our global educational expertise to learners and teachers in diverse regions of India," he added.
The Adani-GEMS schools will benefit from a global curriculum combined with the best of Indian study boards.