Kerala Launches 'Digital Square' Under 100-Day Education Action Plan

The Kerala government has launched Digital Square, a new initiative aimed at integrating technology into primary school classrooms as part of its 100-day education action plan. Introduced by Kerala Infrastructure and Technology for Education (KITE), the technology arm of the state's General Education Department, the programme seeks to strengthen digital literacy among young students while promoting creativity, self-learning and interactive classroom experiences through technology-driven education.

The initiative was inaugurated by General Education Minister N. Samsudheen during a statewide orientation workshop held in Malappuram. More than 4,000 headmasters and headmistresses from schools across Kerala's 14 districts participated in the event through an interactive video conference. The programme is designed to help schools adopt digital learning tools from the primary level and ensure students become familiar with technology in an engaging and inclusive manner.

Under the scheme, government and aided primary schools equipped with the necessary hardware infrastructure will receive a dedicated software package featuring a range of educational and creative applications. Built on Free and Open Source Software (FOSS), the package includes accessibility features such as audio assistance for visually impaired students and high-contrast interfaces for children with special needs, ensuring that digital learning remains inclusive for all learners.

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The Digital Square software package includes the GCompris educational suite, the e-Cube language-learning platform and applications for music, digital painting and animation. It also introduces students to emerging digital concepts such as animation, visual effects, game development and comics from an early stage. The programme aims to make classroom learning more interactive while encouraging students to develop digital skills through creative and activity-based learning.

KITE Chief Executive Officer K. Anvar Sadath said the organisation had developed a dedicated FOSS-based edutainment package to provide equal access to quality digital learning resources. He noted that the platform eliminates commercial software dependency while incorporating built-in content filtering mechanisms and digital safeguards to ensure a secure learning environment for young students using technology in classrooms.

Alongside Digital Square, the Kerala government unveiled several other initiatives under its 100-day education action plan. These include Cyber Safety Protocol 2026, which requires schools to establish cyber safety committees to address AI-related and online risks, Tharapadham, a digital platform for monitoring student attendance and learning outcomes, and the School Wiki-thon campaign to strengthen local knowledge repositories. The government also announced plans to expand the Little KITEs IT clubs to upper primary schools, further promoting digital literacy and technology skills among students across the state.

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