The Andhra Pradesh State government will set up an additional National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) and Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) coaching centre at Madhurawada in Visakhapatnam district for  Scheduled Caste (SC) girls with an intake of 160, reports The New Indian Express.

Social Welfare Minister Meruga Nagarjuna said though there are three NEET and JEE coaching centres, including two for SC boys at Adavi Takkellapadu in Guntur district and Chinna Tekuru in Kurnool and another one for girls at Edupugallu in Krishna, the government has decided to set up another centre for SC girls at Madhurawada to meet the growing demand. As many as 56 coaching centres will also be arranged to prepare students from SC Gurukuls for the advanced supplementary exams so as to ensure better results in Class X and Intermediate, he explained.

Holding a review meeting with Dr BR Ambedkar SC Gurukul District Coordinators at the Secretariat on Tuesday, May 23, the Social Welfare Minister said Gurukuls secured better results in the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and Intermediate examinations, compared to the state average. The Gurukul students achieved 80.38% results in the SSC exams and 74.13% in Intermediate.

The admission process in SC Gurukuls has already commenced. Out of the total 14,940 seats in Class V in the Gurukuls, 13,881 seats have been filled. Similarly, out of the total 13,520 seats in junior Intermediate, 13,180 seats have been filled in the first phase. The leftover 1,450 seats from Class V to IX will also be filled soon, he added.

Principal Secretary (Social Welfare) R Jayalakshmi and other officials were present.