Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Saturday his government would provide free online coaching lessons for competitive exams, weeks after massive youth-led protests forced the education minister to resign.<\/p>\n
Modi said the initiative was aimed at easing the financial burden on millions of families caught up in the country’s fiercely competitive education system.<\/p>\n
The 75-year-old leader made the announcement while speaking from the ramparts of New Delhi’s imposing 17th-century Red Fort to mark the country’s independence from Britain on August 15, 1947.<\/p>\n
“We have decided to provide free online coaching for various competitive examinations for our youth. We have the digital public infrastructure, and we have highly talented teachers and educators,” he said.<\/p>\n
The move comes after nationwide protests triggered by the leak of a key medical entrance examination paper and a series of other recruitment scandals.<\/p>\n
The protests, which culminated in the resignation of education minister Dharmendra Pradhan last month, exposed deep frustration among young Indians over access to jobs and educational opportunities.<\/p>\n
They also highlighted immense pressures on students in India, the world’s most populous nation where admission to government-run colleges remains one of the most sought-after pathways to economic security.<\/p>\n
The cut-throat competition has fuelled a sprawling coaching industry where students spend years preparing, often at enormous financial cost for their families.<\/p>\n
Modi said the free online classes would ease financial burden on “poor and middle-class families”.<\/p>\n
“The competition surrounding coaching classes has become a huge burden for middle-class families… (Students) can stay close to their families, receive their care, and avoid placing an additional financial burden on them,” he said.<\/p>\n
Modi also announced plans to train several million young people in artificial intelligence tools.<\/p>\n
“We have decided in the next one year, one crore (10 million) youth will be given training in AI skills,” he said.<\/p>\n
Since the protests, authorities have attempted to appease the nation’s youth, with the parliament hiking penalties for leaking exam papers.<\/p>\n
Critics say the protests posed one of the biggest challenges to Modi’s government since coming to power in 2014.<\/p>\n
– Growth framework –\u00a0<\/p>\n
In a speech lasting more than an hour, Modi also reiterated his government’s vow to help India achieve the status of a developed country in the next 20 years, announcing a seven-point growth and reform framework.<\/p>\n
The initiative would focus on manufacturing, agriculture, technology and defence, as well as India’s “soft power” through yoga, tourism and handicrafts.<\/p>\n
India, Asia’s third-largest economy, must “establish itself as a trusted global supply chain partner for the world”, Modi said of manufacturing.<\/p>\n
In the coming years, he said India will have eight more semiconductor chip plants and five nuclear reactors which will generate 100 gigawatts of power by 2047.<\/p>\n
Last year, the government allowed private firms to build and operate atomic power projects, underlining a push for alternative energy.<\/p>\n
Modi said young people stood to gain the most from his vision for development.<\/p>\n
“The youth have a big role to play in the journey towards a developed India… the greatest beneficiary of a developed India is the youth of the country.”<\/p>\n
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