Ahead of Delhi Assembly polls, AAP government extends free coaching scheme to OBC, economically weak students of general category

New Delhi: Ahead of Assembly polls, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday announced a big raise in financial aid under its free coaching scheme ‘Jai Bheem Mukhyamantri Yojana’. He also extended the benefits of the scheme to the students of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and economically weak students of the general category. [caption id=“attachment_7104741” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. PTI[/caption] The Delhi government has increased the financial assistance under the scheme, which was earlier meant for SC students, from Rs 40,000 to Rs 1 lakh. “In this age of competition for admission in good medical and engineering colleges, the students need to take coaching. But some poor students lag behind for want of good coaching. That is why we came up with ‘Jai Bheem Mukhyamantri Yojana’ two years ago for SC students in which the financial aid of Rs 40,000 was given”, Kejriwal told reporters at a press conference. “Now, we have found that the amount is too low and there is a need to help students from other categories as well. It has been decided to raise the amount provided under the scheme from Rs 40,000 to Rs 1 lakh. The scheme will now also be extended to all students from SCs, OBCs and economically weak in the general category”, he added. Talking about the eligibility criteria, the chief minister said: “There is a condition for this scheme. The student will have to be from Delhi. He or she should have done Classes 10 and 12 from Delhi. Only then, they will be eligible for this scheme. The family income should be less than Rs 8 lakh per annum”.