IAS Akshay Sunil Agrawal is a 2019 batch officer of Odisha cadre and is currently posted as District Collector of Nayagarh,Odisha. Known for his strong headed approach and progressive vison,Agrawal strongly believes in transformative power of Education.

One of his key priorities as Collector is ensuring digital literacy among children.”I want all the children in my district to be digitally literate.Computer education for students in government schools is my priority”he said.

Recognizing the lack of computer education in government schools, despite the availability of computers, he observed that students lacked even basic skills such as using Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, sending emails,and navigating YouTube.Upon further research,he found out “The labs are gathering dust because there's no syllabus, no trained teachers and no proper push”

This realization led him to ask: How will these children survive in the modern world? To bridge this gap,Agrawal launched a digital literacy initiative.The first step was setting up a committee to develop a structured curriculum for computer education in schools.The next step involved training in-house school teachers and making changes to the weekly timetable to accommodate these lessons.“We start with the basic computer and teach up to fundamental coding” he explained.

Under his leadership,students in government schools now receive computer education for 2-3 hours every week. The pilot phase has already covered 56 schools, and by April 2025, the initiative is set to be rolled out across all 250 high schools in the district.“With this expansion approximately 40,000- 50,000 students will benefit from the program”he stated.

To ensure progress,unit-wise assessments were conducted, and student performance was monitored through direct interactions both online via Google Meet and in person.“Initially, children were even afraid to touch the computer.For them, it was a new device. Now, that fear is gone and we are trying to build their confidence in using it”Agrawal remarked.Additionally, in order to build community support,the initiative actively engages parents of the children and political leaders.

Aligned with the Prime Minister’s Digital India mission,Agrawal’s simple yet effective initiative is bridging the digital divide, making future youth more employable and informed.“By ensuring digital literacy today,we are shaping the citizens who are going to lead this country tomorrow”he said.

In the long term, Agrawal also plans to study the long-term impact of digital literacy on students’ academic performance.

“I believe that if someone is digitally literate,it impacts their performance in other subjects as well. It sparks creativity,opens up mind, and improves analytical skills” he noted.

With this initiative,Agrawal aims to ensure that no child in his district is left behind in the digital revolution. “With the resources at hand and no funding, this is being done very sustainably”he stated.