The free laptop distribution scheme (मुफ्त लैपटॉप वितरण योजना) is an initiative of the Government of Uttar Pradesh headed by Akhilesh Singh Yadav of Samajwadi Party to provide for laptops and computer tablets to the students in the state who pass the high school and intermediate examinations to encourage them for higher studies. A total of laptops have been distributed by the Government of Uttar Pradesh between 2012 and 2015, making it one of the largest distribution scheme ever imitation by any government in the world.
History This scheme was first introduced by Samajwadi Party in its 2012 Assembly Election manifesto to give free laptops and tablet computers to intermediate and high-school pass outs of 2012 by Akhilesh Yadav. After becoming the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, he distributed laptops under this scheme in first three years of his administration. In 2015 the government announced to gift free laptops to toppers of each district in Uttar Pradesh. A total of 625 high school class and 425 intermediate toppers of session 2014–2015 will be benefitted. An independent RTI highlighted discrepancies between the purchased laptops and the laptops distributed, pointing to potential corruption. The RTI reply stated that between 2012 and 2014, the government had purchased a total of 14,81,118 laptops (2012-13 -- 9,989 laptops and in 2013-14 -- 14,71,129 laptops). In 2014-15, no laptops were purchased. However, only 6,11,794 laptops were distributed among students.
Purpose and Benefits of the Scheme Uttar Pradesh Government's free laptop scheme was aimed at bridging the digital divide and empowering the youths of the state. The students who were lagging behind due to lack of resources benefited under this scheme.
The beneficiaries as per the decision taken by the state cabinet were students who passed 10th and 12th exams conducted by the following bodies. Uttar Pradesh Secondary Education Board CBSE, ICSE and ISC Poorva Madhyama and Madhyama of Sanskrit Education Board Munshi/Maulvi and Alim of Madrasa Board Recognized ITI and Polytechnics
20% quota for minorities and 21% for SC/CT students was also made in the final Free Laptop Distribution Scheme recipients list. This scheme was considered as one of the visionary approach of socialist government to provide an equal opportunity and to remove discrimination. Youth activist Ravi Nitesh views it as an effort where students in Uttar Pradesh received laptop at a time when many youths were not even able to see a computer. It is believed that through these laptop distribution, students would receive inspiration towards higher education and interest in studies with easiness of resource materials in soft copies and editing of their notes at a time when in India, enrolment in higher education (around 25%) was much lower than many countries (China 43%, USA 85%) and hence there was a strong need to frame policies that may encourage students to study, develop interest and understanding and getting enrolled for higher education.
Configuration Details The configuration details of the laptops provided by Hewlett-Packard(HP)
Sr. No Particulars Description 1 Construction and Externals Metal/ Alloy/ Reinforced hinges for display. The casing ABS plastic of Black or Gray Color Display screen back with Government Approved Logo 2 Processor Latest Generation 64 bit multicore X86 Intel Pentium or equivalent AMD processor 3 Memory 2 GB DDR 1333 MHz RAM expandable to 4 GB 4 Display LED HD 14" with 1366x768 resolution or higher 5 Hard Disk Drive 500 GB SATA 5400 RPM or Higher 6 Audio Dual In-built Speakers 7 Web Cam Yes 8 Qualifying Benchmark BAPCO Sysmark 2007 overall score of 112 or Higher with Windows 7 Professional and 2 GB Memory 9 Graphics Card Integrated Graphics Minimum 128 MB VRAM or higher 10 Ports I/O ports, Minimum 3 USB 2.0 ports, Microphone Jack, 1 VGA, 1 HDMI, Headphone/ Speaker out, RJ-45, AC Power 11 LAN Ethernet Controller 10/100 Mbps or higher 12 Wireless Wireless 802.11 q/b/g or higher and standard Bluetooth 13 Keyboard Standard Full size keyboard with touch pad 14 Operating System Preloaded Dual Boot – Primary boot : Windows 7 Starter with Antivirus, Secondary Boot : Linux/Ubuntu 15 Optical Drive DVD R/W 16 AC Power Adapter Input Voltage Range : 110–250 V, 50 Hz with necessary cables 17 Standard Accessories Power Cable, Power Adapter and Charger, User Manual, Backpack etc. 18 Operation Temperature 0–55 °C 19 Battery Type Standard Re-chargeable 6 Cell Li-Ion ( 45 WHr ) with min 3 Hrs backup
References 7. https://www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/up-govt-approves-rs-2-800-cr-laptop-scheme-113012400092_1.html Business Standard Retrieved 2022-10-05
8. https://indianexpress.com/article/india/uttar-pradesh/up-budget-no-funds-for-akhileshs-free-laptop-scheme/ The Indian Express Retrieved 2022-10-05
9. https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/nation-world/up-cm-akhilesh-yadav-launches-free-laptop-scheme-for-students/slideshow/18907278.cms The Economic Times Retrieved 2022-10-05