Chandigarh : Presenting the Punjab State Budget 2020, Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal announced allocation of ₹12,488 crore for promotion of schools and higher education, the minister announced free education for all students in government schools up to Class 12.
Currently, education is free for all students up to Class 8 and it is free up to Class 12 only for girls.
Free transportation facility for primary schools students will also be provided and for this ₹10 crore has been allocated, Badal said.
In an another major announcement, Badal said the retirement age of government employees has been reduced from 60 to 58. “With this, we will be able to provide employment to three to four times the number of people who retire. We will also be able to get more talented pool of young people to serve Punjab,” he added.
The budget earmarked ₹100 crore for giving 10 lakh free smartphones to the youth, which was one of the main poll promises of the ruling Congress. The supply of smart phones can be expected from April 2020, he added.
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