Presenting the state budget for the fiscal year 2024-25, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah allocated Rs 2,710 crore for the construction of residential schools and hostels, aimed at providing quality education and accommodation to students from Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) sections.
Moreover, ashram schools will be rebranded as Maharshi Valmiki Adivasi Budakattu Residential Schools, with measures in place to expand their infrastructure and improve educational outcomes, highlighted an ANI report.
CM Siddaramiah presented the budget speech today, Friday, February 16, presenting the state budget of Rs 3.71 lakh crore this year
Siddaramaiah said, "In all schools which currently have 1st to 5th standard, 6th standard will be started. In all schools which currently have 1st to 7th standard, 8th standard will be started. The student strength in each standard will be increased from 25 to 40. In seven district headquarters which do not have post-matric hostels, one boys and one girls hostel each, that is, 14 hostels will be started. Each hostel will have a strength of 100 students."
In addition, a grant of Rs 15,000 will be offered to 200 engineering graduates who are undergoing vocational training courses lasting six to 12 months, such as those in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML), at institutions like the Indian Institutes of Science (IISc), Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), or National Institutes of Technology (NITs), he said.
Also, a monthly grant of Rs. 25,000 will be granted to 100 research scholars from Scheduled Tribes who are engaged in post-doctoral fellowship programmes and are not currently receiving any other fellowships, added ANI.
The CM further added that pre-university colleges will be established in 25 schools with existing infrastructure. The revival of the fee reimbursement scheme for minority community students pursuing BSc, nursing, and nursing courses in government/private colleges are underway.
