Odisha government launches free KG‑to‑PG education scheme with 75% attendance rule

The Odisha government issued a Standard Operating Procedure for its Gyanodaya‑Shiksharu Samruddhi scheme, which provides free education from kindergarten through postgraduate studies in government and government‑aided colleges. All regular academic undergraduate and postgraduate courses are covered, while professional, technical, self‑financing and PPP‑mode programmes are excluded. Admission, re‑admission and other institutional fees are waived, but examination fees and hostel charges remain payable.

Students must maintain at least 75 % attendance to retain the benefit, with a possible reduction to 65 % in exceptional cases. The SOP mandates refunds for fees already paid and requires re‑admissions to be processed through the Student Academic Management System. To prevent revenue loss for colleges, the state will reimburse approved amounts in phases – an initial 10 %, then 15 %, followed by three equal installments of 25 % each during the academic year. The scheme aims to raise the Gross Enrolment Ratio to 60 % as outlined in Odisha’s Vision 2036/2047 documents and is expected to benefit more than 3.2 million students annually. Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj emphasized that the initiative aligns with the National Education Policy 2020’s goal of ‘education for all.’