UP Cabinet approves purchase of 25 lakh tablets for college students

LUCKNOW: The Uttar Pradesh Cabinet on Tuesday approved the purchase of 25 lakh tablets for free distribution among eligible youth under the Swami Vivekananda Yuva Sashaktikaran Yojana, with the state government making a budget provision of Rs 2,374.60 crore for the scheme in 2026-27.

The decision, taken at a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath , includes issuing purchase orders to institutions selected through the tender process, the state government said in a statement.

The five-year scheme aims to technologically empower youth by providing them free tablets and connecting them with digital resources for education, training, employment and self- employment opportunities.

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Tablets for UG, PG, diploma, skill development students

Eligible youth pursuing undergraduate and postgraduate courses, diploma programmes, skill development courses and various other educational and training programmes will receive the devices.

The tablets are intended to help students complete their academic curriculum more effectively through digital means and access technology-based learning facilities. They will also enable youth to access government and non-government schemes, online training, and employment and self-employment-related services.

The state government said the initiative is aimed not merely at providing devices but at technologically empowering youth and connecting them with new opportunities in education, employment and self-employment.

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'Technologically empowered youth'

The scheme will not impose any additional financial burden on the Central Government, it said. Finance and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna told reporters that the Cabinet decision would help technologically empower registered skilled youth associated with higher education, technical education, health education, skill development training and ITIs.

"Easy access to digital resources will improve the quality of training while also enhancing the employability skills of youth," Khanna said. A technologically empowered youth workforce can play an important role in employment generation and the services sector, he added.