UP govt to provide financial support to girls from birth till graduation: Yogi Adityanath

Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday said the state government is working to make girls self-reliant and will provide them a comprehensive package of financial assistance from birth until graduation to support their education.

Addressing a programme organised on the occasion of International Women's Day, the chief minister launched the mobile application of the Rozgar Sangam portal, distributed appointment letters to newly selected sevikas and attended the Pink Rozgar Mahakumbh 2026.

"Daughters will no longer be dependent on anyone. From birth to graduation, the government will provide a package to support their education," he said.

Adityanath said financial assistance would begin immediately after the birth of a girl child once her name is registered in the official birth registration system.

"As soon as the birth of the girl is registered, the amount meant for the birth of the child will be transferred directly to her bank account", he said.

The chief minister said the government would also provide funds to ensure that the girl child receives all required vaccinations.

He said that the financial assistance would continue at different stages of education. When a girl enrols in Class 1, the amount will be credited to her bank account after registration. Similarly, when she passes Class 5 and takes admission in the next class, financial support will again be transferred.

"This process will continue until she completes high school or intermediate and moves on to higher education or other pursuits," he said.

Adityanath said a total amount of Rs 25,000 is being provided under different categories and that around 2.7 million girls are currently benefiting from the scheme.

He also highlighted the state government’s mass marriage programme for economically weaker families, saying parents need not worry about the cost of their daughter’s wedding as the government is providing Rs 1 lakh for the marriage of eligible beneficiaries.

"More than four lakh daughters have been married under this scheme so far," he said.

The chief minister also referred to the upcoming Laxmibai Scooty Scheme under which the government plans to distribute scooters to girls.

"In the first phase, meritorious female students will receive scooters and in the second phase the scheme will be extended to other students as well," he said.

He said the government has been working in line with the “Five Ts” — Tradition, Technology, Transparency, Trust and the resulting Transformation -- a concept promoted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Highlighting the importance of women's participation in nation-building, the chief minister said no society can become self-reliant or self-sufficient if half of its population is ignored.

Referring to initiatives of the central government, such as the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana, he said several programmes have been launched to strengthen women’s empowerment. He also expressed confidence that in the coming years, women would occupy around 35 per cent of seats in Parliament and state assemblies.

"Earlier, the participation of women in the labour force was around 13 per cent, which has now increased to about 36–37 per cent," he said.

He claimed that before he became chief minister in 2017, law and order in the state had deteriorated, and both daughters and traders felt unsafe.

"Curfew and riots had become the identity of Uttar Pradesh. There was chaos and migration. In many districts, parents hesitated to send their daughters to school and preferred to send them outside the state to hostels or relatives if they wanted them to study," he said.

The chief minister said strict action is taken against those who harass women.

"If any miscreant harasses a daughter or sister, then at the next crossroads, 'Yamraj' is waiting to issue his ticket," he said, asserting that the safety of women ensures the safety of society as a whole.

Adityanath also announced that the state government has decided to establish digital entrepreneurship centres in every Nyaya Panchayat under a new scheme announced in the latest budget.

More than 4,000 women will be connected with the initiative, he said.

Adityanath further said the government has begun establishing working women's hostels for those employed in cities away from their homes. Such hostels are currently being constructed in Varanasi, Meerut, Prayagraj, Gorakhpur, Kanpur, Jhansi and Agra.

He said similar hostels would also be built in Ayodhya, Bareilly, Aligarh, Mirzapur, Saharanpur and Moradabad, for which provisions have been made in the state budget.

During the Pink Rozgar Mahakumbh 2026, an initiative aimed at promoting employment opportunities and empowering women across the state, more than 5,000 women received job offers from participating organisations.

The chief minister also launched the mobile application of the Rozgar Sangam portal, a platform designed to connect job seekers with employment opportunities.

At the event, he distributed appointment letters to 94 newly recruited Mukhya Sevikas and honoured outstanding women employees and meritorious girl students with the Nari Shakti Awards.

He also handed over cheques to beneficiaries of the Kanya Sumangala Yojana and oversaw the direct benefit transfer of Rs 3,849 lakh for insurance premiums as well as for sarees and uniforms for anganwadi workers.