Udupi: Pramod Madhwaraj, Minister for Fisheries, Youth Empowerment and Sports, said on Tuesday that free education would be provided for girls from kindergarten to post-graduation level in all government schools and colleges in the State from April 1, this year.

He was speaking after inaugurating the silver jubilee celebrations of the Tenkanidiyur Government First Grade College and Post Graduate Centre, here.

Mr. Madhwaraj said that the State government had decided to exempt girl students from all fees so that they got free education. Besides this, the government had also decided to provide free bus pass facility to all students.

The students should make use of these facilities provided to them so that there were no hurdles for their education, he said.

After the Siddaramaiah government came to power in the State, it had been providing more grants to the Department of Collegiate Education.

Priority was being given to providing basic facilities to the government colleges.

The government had also taken proactive steps on the issues of guest lectures and assistant professors. The government was spending ₹60,000 per student annually, he said.

Students who bagged ranks in the Mangalore University exams, Chandana, Shivakumar, Ramya, Ashwini and Sampreeta, were felicitated on the occasion.