“The UGC has nearly stopped funding research activities. The state government is now sponsoring those academic endeavours,” she claimed.Banerjee said there is a need to learn many languages, including English, but one should not forget the mother tongue. “The sweetness of Bengali is all-pervading,” she said.Banerjee said so far 93 lakh students have taken benefit of the ‘Kanyashree’ scheme, which is aimed at preventing child marriages, and it would surpass 1 crore next year.As part of the scheme, poor schoolgirls in the age group of 13 to 18 are provided Rs 1,000 annually and given a one-time grant of Rs 25,000 when they turn adult, provided that they are engaged in an academic or occupational pursuit and are unmarried.The CM said her government has spent Rs 17,000 crore for implementing the scheme, which has also received UN recognition.”Due to Kanyashree, dropout rates at the primary, secondary and higher secondary levels have dropped. Dropout rates at the primary level are zero,” she said.The aim of the government is to make the youth self-sufficient and help them stand on their own feet, she said.
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