Amaravati, Jul 29 (IANS): Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Thursday released the second tranche of Jagananna Vidya Deevena by directly crediting Rs 694 crore into the bank accounts of the eligible mothers of nearly 11 lakh students pursuing higher education in the state.

The Vidya Deevena scheme aims to take education to the poor and needy to ultimately eradicate poverty through education.

Reddy said the state government has spent Rs 5,573 crore for fee reimbursement under this scheme since 2019, including clearing Rs 1,880 crore pending dues from the previous government during the 2018-19 fiscal.

"The scheme has been designed to make education accessible to the poor, creating an opportunity for those students who want to pursue higher education without burdening their families," the Chief Minister said.

Under the Vidya Deevena scheme, fee reimbursement will be credited into the accounts of the students' mothers in four tranches. The first tranche was released in April, second on Thursday, the third will be released in December and the fourth in February 2022.

Reddy said that education is the real wealth which can be bequeathed to the future generations, and asserted that education alone has the potential to eradicate poverty and transform lives.

The Chief Minister highlighted that the state government is committed to the education sector, mentioning schemes such as Jagananna Amma Vodi, Goru Mudha, Vidya Kanuka and Vasati Deevena.

According to Reddy, the Andhra Pradesh government has spent Rs 26,677 crore on education alone.

Unlike the earlier practice of transferring money to the college managements, Reddy said the funds are now being directly credited into the mothers' accounts.

The move is aimed at enabling better supervision of college facilities and students' wellbeing, which also leads to improving the accountability of the college managements.