HYDERABAD: Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, while announcing the launch of KG-to-PG free education scheme on the occasion of the 125th birth anniversary celebrations of architect of the Constitution Dr BR Ambedkar, showered sops on students belonging to weaker sections.
Rao laid the foundation stones and performed bhoomi puja for a 125-foot-tall Ambedkar statue beside NTR Gardens, reconstruction of Ambedkar Bhavan at Lower Tank Bund and the Centre for Dalit Studies building at Borabanda.
Addressing a meeting later, the chief minister sanctioned 250 residential institutions for students belonging to SCs, STs and minorities. All these new residential educational institutions will start functioning from the 2016-17 academic year.
“We are starting 100 social welfare residential schools, 25 residential degree colleges and 25 residential degree colleges for ST girls this year. We have already announced 70 residential schools for minorities which will also start functioning this academic year,” Rao said.
“We are starting these institutions under the KG-to-PG free education programme of the state government. Simultaneously, I am announcing the launch of KG-to-PG education system,” Rao said.
Rao made it clear that the 250 residential educational institutions would not function under the education department but under the Social Welfare Residential Educational Institutions Society (TSWREIS).
Rao said he announced these decisions after holding discussions with SC welfare minister G Jagadish Reddy and TSWREIS secretary RS Praveen Kumar.
KG-to-PG free education was a major pre-poll promise of the TRS and the party has been under attack from various quarters for not implementing it even after 20 months. On Thursday, Rao announced the launch of the programme.
Rao also announced the enhancement of scholarship amount from ` 10 lakh to ` 20 lakh to SC and ST students for pursuing studies abroad. “SCs and STs should not always seek jobs. They should be in a position to give jobs to others. That is why we have decided to encourage Dalit industrialists in the new industrial policy. Currently, a group of Dalit entrepreneurs are undergoing training at National Academy of Construction. After training, they will be given contracts to take up government works,” he said and added that the Dalit contractors would be supplied earthmovers too.
Paying rich tributes to Ambedkar, Rao said that because of Ambedkar’s decision to give powers to the Centre for bifurcation of states under Article 3 of the Constitution, the dream of separate Telangana was realised.
Deputy chief minister K Srihari and others also participated in the programmes.