ISLAMABAD: The Federal Ministry of Education, through the National Book Foundation (NBF), has started a process to provide 8,000 refurbished Chromebooks to government schools and colleges in Islamabad.
They invited companies to submit bids and awarded the contract to the one with the lowest offer after an online bidding process.
The bids were opened in a public meeting at NBF’s office in Islamabad. Eleven companies applied, but only ten qualified for the financial stage. The company offering the lowest price was chosen to supply the Chromebooks.
According to the plan, the Chromebooks must be delivered within 45 days after the contract is signed. If the supplier fails to deliver on time, they will face a penalty of Rs. 15,000 per day for up to 10 days.
The devices will have basic features like a 4GB RAM, 32GB storage, a camera, a microphone, and a battery lasting at least 4 hours. They must also support Google updates until 2027 or later.
Committee member Talat Saeed said the Chromebooks will reach the schools and colleges within two months. The winning company will need to ensure the devices meet the required standards.
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NBF can adjust the number of Chromebooks based on the available budget and has the right to accept or reject any bids as per government rules.
Earlier, Federal Secretary for Education and Training, shared that the federal government plans to make primary school students bagless starting next academic year to lessen their load.
He made this statement during a briefing when Advisor to the President of Pakistan, Dr. Asim Hussain, visited Government Girls School in Islamabad.
Wani explained that students will leave their bags at school and take home just one book and one notebook for homework. IBCC Executive Director Ghulam Ali Mallah and the school principal, Saba Faisal, were present at the event.
He also mentioned a future plan to give laptops to these students so they can read textbooks on computers. Wani added that 65,000 children in 240 primary schools are currently getting free lunches costing Rs. 45 per child, with Rs. 15 of that amount coming from an NGO that prepares the food.
