The Adi Dravidar and tribal communities have made a rapid progress in education in the past three years, Minister for Adi Dravida and Tribal Welfare N. Subramanian told the Assembly on Tuesday.
Replying to the debate on the demands for grants for the department, he said Rs. 1,998 crore was sanctioned for 2014-15, and of this, Rs. 1,675.51 crore was earmarked for education and related schemes.
During 2010-11, 17,689 students belonging to the Adi Dravidar and tribal communities and those converted to Christianity had been enrolled in engineering colleges across the State. But, during 2013-14, the number of such students enrolled in the engineering courses had gone up to 30,319. Similarly, 15,669 students were admitted to the medical and paramedical courses during the 2013-14 academic year, as against 6,109 students during 2010-11. The government would spend Rs. 50 lakh every year on helping 100 eligible engineering graduates from the communities sit for the Common Admission Test for MBA courses. For the benefit of 32,112 girls in 185 schools run by the department, each school would get a napkin burner worth Rs. 25,000.
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Mr. Subramanian announced that special tahsildar offices would be established at Coonnoor and Gudalur in the Nilgiris. Repairs and maintenance would be carried out in 1,096 schools under the control of the department at a cost of Rs. 1.09 crore.