The Punjab government, under Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, has rolled out a series of ambitious education initiatives that could reshape opportunities for Scheduled Caste, Backward Class, and minority students. Social Justice Minister Dr. Baljit Kaur announced that the state will now fund overseas education for SC students and children of landless farm laborers, covering airfare, visa costs, tuition, medical insurance, and a maintenance allowance of ₹13.17 lakh.
Applicants under 35 with at least 60 percent marks and a family income below ₹8 lakh can apply, and thirty percent of the slots will be reserved for women. “This scheme will open new doors of opportunity for Punjab’s talented youth, and now parents will no longer have to mortgage their property to send their children abroad,” she said, adding that the NOS portal will accept applications until October 24.
The foreign scholarship programme complements a restructured Post-Matric Scholarship scheme that the AAP government claims to have freed from “years of disputes and irregularities.” The results are visible: from 1.76 lakh students in 2022, beneficiaries have risen to 2.37 lakh—a 35 percent jump in just three years. By comparison, the previous five-year term reached only 3.71 lakh students, while the Mann government has already supported 6.78 lakh in less than half that time. For 2025–26, the target has been set at 2.70 lakh, with awareness campaigns in schools and colleges to ensure maximum coverage.
Alongside this, the Top Class Education scheme will extend scholarships to OBC, EBC, and DNT students from families earning below ₹2.5 lakh annually, admitted to eleven premier institutions including AIIMS Bathinda, IIT Ropar, IIM Amritsar, IISER Mohali, and NIT Jalandhar.
Not all efforts are focused abroad. A special two-month PCS crash course will begin at the Ambedkar Institute in Mohali for SC, BC, and minority candidates preparing for civil services. Forty aspirants will be selected through a test on September 30, and the upgraded institute, renovated with ₹1.47 crore and further supported with an additional ₹1.22 crore, will now attract top professors with enhanced honorariums.
For a state where the migration of young people has long defined aspirations, these measures mark a shift—transforming dreams into structured policy. They aim to ensure that the next generation of students does not chase education abroad through debt, but with a government-backed ticket. “Our goal is to make higher education accessible, affordable, and attractive for every eligible child in Punjab. Only through education can we socially and economically empower our students,” Dr. Kaur emphasized.
