“The idea is for the CPS to enter communities with much fanfare, to spur on interest among kids and adults alike,” said Vivek Ramchandani, an education officer at UNICEF, which is working in conjunction with the Education department to design the CPS.

Fitted with a 40-inch flat screen digital television, computer, library and sports equipment, the CPS will function as a learning resource centre. Portable fencing and awnings that extend out from the van will provide classroom space. “It’s modelled on the principle of aeroplanes, filling a compact area with as many resources as possible,” said Education Secretary Rina Ray.

But both Ramchandani and Ray recognise that a mobile classroom alone will not be enough to reach and retain children who have dropped out of school. Alongside teachers, the vans will have on board curriculum specialists, teacher-trainers and community specialists to ensure the CPS effectively reaches out to people in areas it travels through. “We want to develop capacity among teachers and the wider community to get children back into formal schools,” said Ramchandani.

To reach the most marginalised of children, the CPS will first travel into slums and JJ clusters of east and central Delhi. It will stop for two-hour sessions, three to four times, six days a week, in districts with inadequate school access and a high incidence of “out-of-school” children between the ages of 6 and 14.

In the evenings, the CPS will work on adult literacy programmes. “If the vans inspire others, we’ll work towards establishing a public private partnership and extend the project,” said Ray.

For now the Delhi government will cover the costs of the CPS, but it will be run by non-governmental organisations (NGOs), as yet undecided, specialising in education.