Punjab relaunches laptop scheme after eight-year hiatus
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Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has relaunched the provincial government's student laptop scheme after an eight-year hiatus, announcing the distribution of high-performance 13th-generation Core i7 laptops to top-performing students across the country, Express News reported.
At a ceremony held at Lahore's historic University of Engineering and Technology (UET), the Chief Minister formally inaugurated the first phase of the scheme by distributing laptops and sitting among students rather than on the stage. She also launched Phase II of the 'Honahar Scholarship' initiative, which will provide financial aid to thousands of students.
According to officials, an online portal has been opened for students from other provinces, including Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan, Balochistan, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Punjab will receive the largest share, but Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will receive 3,136 laptops, followed by Balochistan with 938, AJK with 517, and Gilgit-Baltistan with 410.
As part of the Honahar Scholarship Phase II, students from second to fifth year or third to eighth semesters will be awarded PKR 20,000 each. In Lahore Division alone, over 3,121 students from 27 public colleges, six medical colleges, and several universities will benefit from scholarships worth over PKR 120 million.
Additionally, a total of 14,000 students in Lahore Division will receive laptops under the scheme. These will be distributed across 13 public universities, six medical colleges, and 27 higher education institutions.
In a show of honour, a ceremonial guard of honour was presented to students at the event, where the Higher Education Department also screened a special documentary on the laptop scheme and scholarships. UET students performed patriotic songs to mark the occasion.
'When Pakistan's youth say 'Qadam Qadam Abaad Rahe,' then Inshallah, this land shall forever thrive,' Maryam Nawaz said during her address.
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