ANDHRA PRADESH SPENT RS. 52,600 CR ON EDUCATION IN 3 YEARS

· SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN ENROLLMENT IN GOVT SCHOOLS; 7 LAKH STUDENTS ENROLLED BETWEEN THE ACADEMIC YEARS 2018-2019 TO 2021-22

· AP CM LAUNCHES JAGANANNA AMMA VODI FOR 2021-22 ACADEMIC YEAR

· THIRD YEAR IN A ROW; 82.31 LAKH SCHOOL STUDENTS BENEFIT FROM THE SCHEME; Rs. 6,595 CR DEPOSITED TO 43.96 LAKH MOTHERS ACCOUNTS

· “EXPENDITURE INCURRED ON EDUCATION IS AN INVESTMENT FOR THE FUTURE OF OUR CHILDREN”: AP CM

Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, June 27, 2022: ‘Jagananna Amma Vodi’ scheme is a revolutionary step that has come a long way in transforming the lives of millions of families in Andhra Pradesh says Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy while disbursing the financial assistance of Rs 6,595 crore in Srikakulam on Monday.

Addressing the people including the school children present at the event, the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh said, “In the years to come, Amma Vodi will be seen as a path breaking initiative in the realm of education by any government in the country. For the 3rd consecutive year in a row, the Andhra Pradesh Government has disbursed the financial assistance benefiting 82, 31,502 school students for the academic year 2021-22.” He credited the financial assistance of Rs. 15,000 under the scheme into the bank accounts of mothers of school children studying between classes 1 and 12.

By successfully implementing revolutionary measures under various schemes in the education sector, there has been a remarkable increase in the number of students enrolled in government schools. From 37.21 lakh in 2018-19, over 7 lakh students have enrolled in government schools, taking the number to 44.30 lakh students in 2021-22.

The Amma Vodi scheme gives a school-going child’s mother Rs 15,000 per year for educational expenditure. Out of Rs. 15,000 financial assistance, the government would use Rs. 2,000 for the use of School Maintenance Fund (SMF) and Toilet Maintenance fund (TMF).

As of now, the government has spent Rs 19,617.53 crores benefitting 44.50 lakh mothers and 82.31 lakh children under the scheme. To ensure that the funds are used judiciously, the government has decided to implement mandatory attendance of 75 per cent for students which will enable their mothers to derive the benefits of the Amma Vodi scheme. But this time, the government has exempted the ‘minimum 75% attendance restriction’ in 2019-20 and 2021-22 due to the pandemic. Significantly, besides depositing money directly into mothers’ accounts, it also empowers mothers with the right to question the college management and demand accountability.

In the last 36 months of the Government under the leadership of Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy, the expenditure on welfare schemes in the education sector is Rs. 52,600.65 Cr. This includes –

· Jagananna Amma Vodi – Rs. 19,617 Cr,

· Jagananna Vidya Deevena & Vasathi Deevena – Rs. 11,007 Cr

· Jagananna Vidya Kanuka – Rs. 2,324 Cr

· Jagananna Gorumudda – Rs. 3,087 C

· Mana-Badi Nadu–Nedu – Rs. 11,669 Cr

· YSR Sampoorna Poshana – Rs. 4,895 Cr

“Mothers sacrifice everything for their children. I have seen their sacrifices during my padayatra. They very much wish to educate their children but could not do so because of their financial constraints. To remove this friction, I wanted to bring out this scheme to help mothers send their children to schools,” CM Jagan added.

The Chief Minister further said, “I sincerely believe with state’s welfare schemes like Jagananna Amma Vodi, Mana-Badi Nadu-Nedu, Jagananna Vidya Kanuka, Jagananna Gorumudda and English medium with CBSE curriculum being implemented, the government will fulfill the wish of every student’s dream to complete their education and become capable of competing at the global level. We have also entered a MoU with BYJUs, an ed-tech company to provide quality-oriented content for the government school students from 4th to 10th standard.”