Uttar Pradesh's state cabinet has approved a scheme to reward high scoring female students with free scooters, one of several decisions taken at a meeting in Lucknow. Higher education minister Yogendra Upadhyay announced after the meeting that the state has cleared the Rani Laxmibai Scooty Yojana, under which meritorious young women will receive scooters.
A ₹400 Crore Push for Women's Empowerment
According to Upadhyay, the proposal for the Rani Laxmibai Scooty Yojana was cleared specifically to encourage female students as part of the government's women's empowerment push. The scheme covers all government colleges, state universities, private universities, their affiliated colleges and self financed colleges across the state. A budget of ₹400 crore has been earmarked for the scheme. The government's stated aim is to make higher education more accessible for young women and help them become financially self reliant.
Who Will Qualify for the Free Scooter
- The top 5 percent of female students graduating from each institution in the 2025-26 academic session will receive a scooter.
- For students whose family income is below ₹12 lakh a year, the government will bear the registration fee and vehicle insurance, and will also provide 5 litres of petrol.
- The scooters will be procured through the government's GeM e-marketplace portal.
- Daughters of divyangjan, destitute families and martyrs will also receive scooters, and merit criteria will not apply to them.
The Scheme Has Been in the Works Since February
The plan to give students scooters is not new. Uttar Pradesh's budget presented in February 2026 had already set aside ₹400 crore for a student scooter scheme. With the cabinet's approval now in place, the Rani Laxmibai Scooty Yojana is ready to be rolled out. Through the scheme, the government wants to encourage meritorious students, ease their daily commute and further women's empowerment.
Other Big Decisions on Education
The cabinet also cleared another significant education related proposal. To weave the Indian Knowledge Tradition into curricula under the National Education Policy 2020, colleges and universities will now get grants to set up 'Shodhpeeth' research centres. Each university will receive a grant of ₹1 crore, which will be kept as a fixed deposit, with the interest earned used to run the Shodhpeeth's day to day operations. Only colleges that have completed 50 years, or which have more than 5,000 students, will be eligible for this grant.
A separate proposal for a new women's hostel at Basant Mahila Mahavidyalaya, Raj Fort in Varanasi, a constituent college of Banaras Hindu University, was also approved. The college currently has only one hostel; a new women's hostel will now be built under the 'Tvarit Aarthik Vikas Yojana' at a cost of ₹248.30 lakh, with capacity for 112 students. Separately, under the 'Mukhyamantri Shramjeevi Mahila Chhatravas Yojana', the cabinet approved handing over 6,000 square metres of government land free of cost in Varanasi for another women's hostel with a capacity of 500 students. Similar approvals under this scheme have already been given for Jhansi, Agra, Meerut and Gorakhpur, with Varanasi's turn coming now.
Major Announcements on Roads and Transport
The cabinet also approved the Vindhya Expressway, which will connect the districts of Prayagraj, Bhadohi, Mirzapur and Sonbhadra. It will initially be built as a 6 lane road, with the option to expand to 8 lanes later. The expressway will run 333 kilometres and is expected to be built within 36 months. It carries a cost of ₹18,514 crore, of which ₹4,613 crore will go toward land acquisition alone. The expressway will begin from the point in Prayagraj where the Ganga Expressway ends, and together the two projects are expected to cost around ₹26,315 crore.
Alongside this, the cabinet cleared a new greenfield expressway called the Vindhya Purvanchal Spur Link, which will also start as a 6 lane road with room to expand to 8 lanes. The project is estimated to cost ₹9,039 crore, of which ₹5,628 crore is earmarked for construction and the remaining ₹3,379 crore for acquiring 1,731 hectares of land. This link will run 117 kilometres, connecting the districts of Ghazipur, Mirzapur and Chandauli.
On public transport, the cabinet approved the purchase of 220 new buses for the State Road Transport Corporation, including some 50 seater electric buses and some 42 seater buses. A budget of ₹400 crore has been fixed for this purchase.
Decisions on Administration and Emergency Services
A proposal to provide ₹20 crore to the 'Outsourcing Sewa Nigam' was also cleared. The amount will be provided at a zero interest rate, with repayment beginning after 5 years and continuing over the next 10 years at ₹2 crore annually.
The cabinet also approved steps to strengthen fire and emergency services. Against a fresh requirement, 5 water tenders with a 2,500 litre capacity will be built, complete with chassis, high pressure pumps, fabrication and accessories. In addition, 39 outdated water tenders of the same 2,500 litre capacity will be replaced with new ones built to the same specifications. The cabinet also approved the purchase and construction of 5 foam tenders with a 5,000 plus 500 litre capacity, also complete with chassis, high pressure pumps, fabrication and accessories. In all, the cabinet meeting approved 18 proposals spanning education, roads, transport and emergency services.
