According to an official release on March 21, the International Baccalaureate (IB), has unveiled its 100th school in Hyderabad, India. Niraj International School, promoted and managed by Niraj Educational Society, known for educational excellence and state-of-the-art facilities and infrastructure has become the 100th authorised IB World School in the country. Offering the Primary Years Programme (PYP), with a mission statement built on truth, honesty and respect, the school underpins both the mission and vision of the well-established International Baccalaureate. 
Comments Hargovind Pant, Niraj International School Principal, “We are elated at becoming an IB World School and to be accepted into the worldwide family of progressive educational institutions. We practise an education where every child is encouraged to think and learn by doing, where every learner is made to realize that she/he is unique and has a lot to contribute to the world around them. We firmly believe that education is more formation than information – formation of self-esteem, character, and awareness of one’s obligation to the society and the world at large.”
 
The IB PYP, designed for students aged 3 to 12, focuses on the development of the child as an inquirer, both in the classroom and in the world outside. The PYP is flexible enough to accommodate the demands of most national or local curriculums and provides the best preparation for students to engage in the IB Middle Years Programme (MYP).
 
The last decade has seen a rapid increase in the presence of IB schools in India. In the year 2000, there were eight IB schools in the country, with only one authorised PYP school amongst them. Mumbai has the highest number of IB schools (38), with Hyderabad following (15 so far). PYP schools in India now amount to 42, representing an average growth of over three schools per year, making PYP the fastest growing IB programme globally.
 
Founded in Geneva, Switzerland in 1968, the International Baccalaureate (IB) is a not-for profit foundation, which offers four high quality and challenging educational programmes to more than 1 million students in 144 countries.