Karnataka govt to distribute free Tablet PCs to 1.55 lakh students

Bengaluru: Chief Minister BS Yeddiyurappa on Wednesday launched the State’s ambitious plan to distribute free Tablet PCs to over 1.55 lakh students in order to make higher education more accessible during the pandemic.

At a function held in Vidhan Soudha’s Banquet Hall on Wednesday, the chief minister gave the green signal to the program and ten students were given the first Tablet PCs.

The chief minister also inaugurated a model smart classroom set up in the Banquet Hall.

“The tablet PCs will be distributed free of charge to 1.55 lakh students studying in 430 government first grade colleges, 87 government polytechnics and 14 government engineering colleges. The government has spent Rs 163 crore on this project,” Yeddyurappa said.

“2,500 smart classrooms have been installed across the State to enable students to learn using the advanced learning management system. The project was completed at a cost of Rs 27.77 crore,” he added.

Speaking on the occasion, Deputy Chief Minister Dr Ashwath Narayan said that the free Tablet PCs and the state of the art smart classrooms initiative are the first of their kind in the country.