Yogi Govt to Sponsor Meritorious UP Students in Pune with Free Boarding & Lodging

In a welfare-driven educational push to empower underprivileged talent across Uttar Pradesh, the Yogi Adityanath government has rolled out a comprehensive initiative offering fully sponsored residential coaching for national competitive examinations. Under this flagship program, meritorious Class 12 Science stream students enrolled in the state's Jai Prakash Narayan Sarvodaya Vidyalayas will receive one full year of intensive, cost-free preparation for the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) and National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET). Spearheaded by the Uttar Pradesh Social Welfare Department in collaboration with the renowned Dakshana Foundation, the scheme ensures that talented students from low-income households will study at the Dakshana Valley Campus in Pune without incurring any expenses for tuition, residential accommodation, or nutritious meals.

Selection Gateway: Direct Entry via Joint Dakshana Selection Test (JDST-2027)

Admission to this elite preparatory ecosystem is governed by an objective screening protocol designed to identify top academic potential:

• Eligible Cohort: Director of the Social Welfare Department, Sanjeev Singh, announced that students pursuing Class 12 in the science stream during the 2026-27 academic session and appearing for their senior secondary board exams by May 2027 are eligible to apply.

• Testing Mechanism: Candidates must register for the Joint Dakshana Selection Test (JDST-2027), which evaluates core analytical and problem-solving fundamentals.

• Merit-Cum-Means Formula: Final seat allotments will be awarded by synthesizing JDST performance scores, Class 10 board examination marks in foundational science subjects, and certified family income credentials.

Engineering Stream (JEE): Class 10 Cutoffs and Special 5% Waiver for Girls

To balance competitive rigor with affirmative gender inclusion, specific academic baselines have been established for engineering aspirants:

• General Category Boys: Male candidates must have secured a minimum aggregate of 85% marks across Mathematics and Science in their Class 10 board examinations.

• Relaxation for Female Students: To encourage higher female representation in STEM disciplines, general category girls receive a 5% relaxation, setting their qualifying threshold at 80% in Class 10 Mathematics and Science.

• Reserved and PwD Categories: Specific cutoff concessions and relaxation norms will be extended to students belonging to Other Backward Classes (OBC), Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Persons with Disabilities (PwD) in strict accordance with statutory welfare guidelines.

Medical Stream (NEET): Category-Wise Academic Benchmarks

Aspirants aiming to pursue medical careers via NEET must meet clear subject score criteria based on their 10th-grade marksheets:

• General Category Candidates: Must have attained a minimum score of 80% marks in Class 10 science and allied subjects.

• OBC and EWS Candidates: A qualifying benchmark of at least 75% marks is mandatory for candidates from Other Backward Classes and Economically Weaker Sections.

• SC and ST Candidates: Aspirants from Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities require a minimum qualifying score of 65% marks.

Family Income Ceilings and Comprehensive On-Campus Sponsorship

The scheme is structured to ensure that financial deprivation does not halt academic ambition, backed by clear income ceilings:

• Income Limit for Male Students: The total gross annual income of the applicant's family must not exceed ₹3 lakh per annum.

• Enhanced Threshold for Female Students: To foster higher education among daughters from vulnerable households, the annual family income cap for girl students has been elevated up to ₹5 lakh per annum.

• All-Inclusive Pune Campus Facility: Selected scholars will be relocated to the Dakshana Valley Campus in Pune, Maharashtra, where world-class faculty coaching, modern learning materials, comfortable dormitory lodging, and quality daily catering will be provided completely free of charge.