Rajasthan launches primary school mental health program across 1,500 govt schools

Rajasthan has rolled out a statewide mental health and well-being initiative for primary school students, introducing the "Khushishala" program in nearly 1,500 government schools as part of an effort to strengthen children's emotional and social development from an early age.

The initiative is being implemented by the Rajasthan State Council of Educational Research and Training (RSCERT) and is designed for students in Classes 1 to 5.

Through activity-based learning, the program aims to build emotional resilience, improve social-emotional skills, and develop essential life skills.

Officials said Rajasthan is the first state in India to introduce a structured mental health and well-being program at the primary education level.

RSCERT Director Shweta Fagediya said the initiative also includes specialized training for teachers to help them better recognize and respond to students' emotional needs.

“Khushishala has made Rajasthan the first state in India to implement a mental health and well-being program at the primary education level. The objective is to strengthen children’s emotional resilience and social-emotional skills while equipping teachers to better understand and support students’ emotional needs,” she said.

As part of the program, teachers receive a three-day training module followed by a 21-day audio-based course covering emotional awareness, stress recognition, relationship building, and overall well-being.

RSCERT has also developed teacher handbooks and mobile-based learning resources to support classroom activities.

According to Fagediya, the initiative is intended to help teachers integrate well-being concepts into age-appropriate classroom practices rather than limiting the effort to training sessions alone.

Education experts said teacher-led mental health initiatives can improve classroom engagement, strengthen peer interactions, enhance students' ability to manage challenges, and enable teachers to identify emotional concerns more effectively.

The statewide rollout follows a pilot conducted in Sirohi and Banswara districts in 2024, which produced encouraging outcomes.

“The pilot involved 120 teachers and recorded a 53% improvement in socio-emotional skills among students. Among girls, the improvement reached 69%. The findings also indicated stronger teacher-student relationships and greater emotional development among children,” Fagediya said.

She added that the pilot also helped reduce academic stress and encouraged children to enjoy learning through interactive activities.

Building on those results, RSCERT partnered with the Kshamtalaya Foundation to train 165 teachers in 2025 through a blended classroom and online model. Another 1,320 teachers from 33 District Institutes of Education and Training (DIETs) have also completed training.

The program is now being expanded during the current academic session, with plans to train 11,305 teachers at the panchayat level and extend Khushishala to 649 PM SHRI schools across Rajasthan.

“After the completion of these training programs, more than 12,000 schools in Rajasthan will have at least one trained teacher capable of implementing Khushishala activities among primary school students,” Fagediya said.