News updated 13/Dec/2011:
CM announces plan for 100,000 laptops distribution
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Islamabad, The Punjab Government is finalising criterion to select talented students and high achievers to provide 100,000 free of cost laptops, costing Rs2 billion, for advancement of IT among these learners. Students would be selected on merit and it will help them to cope with the challenges of post modern era. The rationale behind provision of 100,000 was to help students overcome the obstacles in the way of learning and professional growth in the modern times, an official said.
Students of all public sector medical and dental colleges, government engineering universities, public sector universities, government law colleges, students of BS Honours in public sector institutions and students of government postgraduate colleges would be considered for the gift of laptop under this scheme.
An official said that students who have obtained 60% or more marks in annual examination and 70% or more marks in the semester system would be eligible to get free laptop. Moreover, 100 top achievers in secondary school certificate examinations from each education board would also be rewarded with a laptop under this scheme. In addition, the Punjab domiciled students currently studying in Quaid-e-Azam University Islamabad and International Islamic University Islamabad, who qualify the approved criterion, would also be given these laptops, the official said.
He said that acquisition of information and communication technology was the need of the hour. The government of the Punjab has already established state-of-the-art IT labs in 4286 schools, he added. The provincial government also intends to take the spread of IT education further through establishment of 515 more IT labs in high and higher secondary level and through establishment of 1030 IT labs in elementary schools. Digitisation is also expected in 26 colleges of the Punjab which are offering BS Honours programmes in different disciplines.
The official said that merit recognition through provision of free laptop computers to talented students would be helpful in achievement of the objectives to create IT enablement in one hundred thousand meritorious students; to reward merit and talent; to boost students’ morale in terms of government patronage; to complement government policy of digitization; and to bring about improvement in social and economic indicators through availability of hi-tech devices in the student community of the Punjab.