BENGALURU: Toppers in second year Pre University final exams belonging to SC/ST category from district levels will be rewarded with a laptop by the Pre University Education (PUE) department from this year.
This is already in practice by the Karnataka Secondary Education Examination Board where toppers from taluk and district levels in board exams are given laptops, but there’s no restriction on category. In PUC, only SC/ST students will be eligible.
According to officials from PUE department, the move will encourage students from SC/ST communities to pursue higher education.
As per the decision taken by the department in a recent meeting with the Minister for Primary and Secondary Education Tanveer Sait, it was been decided to select one topper each from SC and ST community respectively for the reward.
“Students from all the three streams -- Arts, Science and Commerce -- will be selected separately. As it has decided one student from each category will be rewarded, it would mean two students from each stream will get the laptops,” a senior official said.
As per estimates, the department will purchase 186 laptops (6 students from each district, 31 educational districts) worth `65 lakh. “The approximate amount we are spending on each laptop is `35,000,” the official added.