Ahmedabad, Dec 2 The Gujarat government's 'Mukyamantri Kanya Kelavani Nidhi Yojana' (MKKN) has turned out to be a boon for a large number of girl students, helping them to pursue their dream of becoming medical professionals and contribute to the state's healthcare by graduating as trained doctors.
Under the programme, many medical students are pursuing their studies at Dr. MK Shah Medical College and Research Centre in Ahmedabad.
The MKKN scheme was launched by the state government, under the aegis of Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, to address the financial constraints of aspiring medical students and also to ensure that the education of aspiring female MBBS students does not get hampered due to a shortage of funds.
Under the scheme, these students get financial assistance to cover the hefty medical college fees.
A couple of aspiring students also shared their stories with IANS.
Rashi, a medical student from Ankleshwar, said, "My family didn't have enough financial income to pay the medical fees. We benefited from the government's scheme. We received assistance under the 'Chief Minister Kanya Kelavani Nidhi Yojana' to cover the hefty medical college fees."
Manali, a student from Aravalli, said, "I wanted to study MBBS, but our family's financial situation wasn't good. I benefited from the 'Chief Minister Kanya Kelavani Nidhi Yojana.'
Dr. MM Prabhakar, Dean of MKS Medical College, said that the MKKN scheme has benefited female students and reduced the dropout rate.
"Many girls from our college are benefiting from this scheme," she added.
Notably, under the scheme, daughters from families with an annual income of less than Rs 6 lakh are being provided financial assistance of up to Rs 4 lakh for admission to the medical college after passing the NEET exam.
Launched in 2017-18, this scheme has significantly increased the number of girls enrolling in medical colleges in the state.
Under the scheme, the Gujarat government provided financial assistance of Rs 162.69 crore to 5,155 female students for MBBS studies in 2024-25. To date, Rs 798.11 crore has been provided to 26,972 female students in the state under this scheme to become doctors.
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