New Delhi, April 18 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday interacted with students and teachers in Gujarat on Monday and enquired about the possibility of attaching nutrition monitoring with an online system to sensitise students about the need to take balanced diet. “Is it possible? Just ponder over whether it is viable for teachers and what can be done to tell students how much calories they need in a day in accordance with their age, thereby sensitise students and other stakeholders about the balanced diet,” the PM said while interacting with students and various other stakeholders during his visit to the Vidya Samiksha Kendra a Command and Control Centre for Schools in Gandhinagar. Modi narrated a personal experience of his visit to Canada many years ago where he visited a science museum and filled a chart for his diet at the kiosk. The Prime Minister said that he filled details of his vegetarian diet which made the machine say “are you a bird !” The PM was apparently trying to convey the importance of a balanced diet which is essential for the overall well-being of a student. Urging students to play and eat well, he expressed concern over less emphasis on physical activities. He informed that sports is no longer extra-curricular but a part of curriculum. The Prime Minister was shown the monitoring activities, video walls and live demonstration of the various facets of the Kendra. He was briefed by an audio visual presentation. He interacted with the stakeholders and also inquired about the interest of teachers in the new technologies. The Prime Minister also asked the students about the use of Diksha Portal. He inquired about the level of compliance load whether it has increased or it has made the situation easier. He also said in a light-hearted manner that it is becoming difficult to cheat. CRC coordinator from the same district also narrated the change brought about by the new technology. He took the Prime Minister through the process of monitoring and verification by the coordinator. The PM said that though technology is accessible and can open new vistas hitherto unknown but the real world should not be ignored. Talking to class 8 student, Pooja, the PM recalled the time when teachers from Mehsana could not teach in local Kutch dialect. Head teacher of the school also informed about how teachers used apps such as G Shala and Diksha during pandemic and how even nomadic comm ties were provided education. The Prime Minister also asked to maintain an atmosphere of healthy competition based on the new system. The Kendra collects over 500 crore data sets annually and analyses them meaningfully using big data analytics, artificial intelligence and machine learning, in order to enhance overall learning outcomes for students, the PMO said. Vidya Samiksha Kendra has been deemed a global best practice by the World Bank, which has also invited other countries to visit and learn about it, the PMO added. ASU RNJ