Thiruvananthapuram: Higher education minister Roji M John on Friday said govt was committed to rolling out the Rs 1,000 stipend scheme for college going girls during the current academic year itself.Speaking to reporters after declaring 2026 results of BTech, BDes and BHMCT examinations of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University (KTU), John said details of stipend for girl students promised by UDF in its election manifesto would find place in the upcoming state budget. “Since budget is a few days away, I don’t want to go into the details of the scheme implementation. It would be rolled out immediately and preliminary work for it has started,” he said.Reacting to opposition’s criticism that govt was silent over governor’s bid to saffronise statutory bodies in state universities, John said governor’s intervention started during LDF administration. He said UDF wouldn’t support any sort of saffronisation. There was a secret understanding between governor and former chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan over university appointments, he added.Meanwhile, John announced KTU Technical Education Conclave “SOAR 2026,” which will be held on June 15, 17 and 19 at various institutions across the state. Encouraging higher secondary graduates and their parents to attend, he said the conclave would be an excellent opportunity to gain deeper insights into the prospects and pathways available in engineering education. The programme will be hosted across 30 engineering colleges in the state.John said govt and KTU would work together to expedite the construction of the university campus and enhance student enrolment at its schools.
