Chennai . The first phase of Free Laptop Scheme for college students in Tamilnadu will be completed by the end of February.
Officials said 10 lakh students will benefit in the first phase and around two lakh laptops have already reached the eligible beneficiaries. An international tender has been issued to purchase a total of 20 lakh laptops, for which the state government has kept Rs 2 thousand crores for this project. According to officials, laptops supplied by multinational manufacturers like Dell, Acer and HP will be distributed to the students.
These systems will have Intel i3 or AMD Ryzen 3 processors, 8 GB RAM and 256 GB SSD storage. Each laptop will come pre-loaded with Windows 11, Boss Linux, and MS Office 365, giving students both proprietary and open-source platforms for their study needs. These laptops will also include a free six-month subscription to the AI-powered Perplexity Pro platform, which aims to aid research and learning. Along with the laptop, beneficiaries will also receive a high-quality bag.
A senior official of the Higher Education Department said that the work of identification of beneficiaries in about 4,600 Arts, Science, Engineering, Agriculture and Medical colleges of Tamil Nadu has almost been completed. The official said more than one lakh laptops have already been distributed. The colleges have submitted details of almost all the students, which are being carefully verified to ensure that every eligible student gets the benefits of the scheme.
The second phase of distribution is expected to begin in March, further expanding the reach of the scheme. Laptop supplying companies will also set up service centers in all the districts so that after sales support can be provided. Meanwhile, officials have warned students not to believe the rumors being spread on social media about the online registration of the scheme and reiterated that the beneficiaries are being selected only through the colleges.