Students forced to sell blood to fund education in UP, alleges Congress
New Delhi: The Congress on Wednesday accused the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh of failing students, alleging that financially vulnerable youngsters were being forced to sell their blood to meet expenses on education, coaching and hostel accommodation.
Addressing a press conference at the Congress office in New Delhi, Uttar Pradesh in-charge Rajendra Pal Gautam and national media coordinator Abhay Dubey raised concerns over ‘scholarship cuts’, ‘examination paper leaks’, ‘recruitment irregularities’ and ‘student suicides’. They alleged that the state’s education system was in disarray.
Gautam referred to a sting operation by a media organisation that allegedly exposed the exploitation of economically disadvantaged students in Prayagraj. He claimed that middlemen operating around the blood bank of the Allahabad Medical Association were identifying financially distressed hostel residents and inducing them to sell blood using forged documents.
Students were paid Rs 4,000 to Rs 5,000 per unit, while recipients were charged up to Rs 8,000, the leaders alleged. Gautam warned that repeated blood donation could pose serious health risks and questioned why students had to resort to such measures to continue their education.
The Congress leader also claimed that nearly five lakh Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) students in Uttar Pradesh had been deprived of scholarships. He said the Centre’s contribution towards post-matric scholarships for SC students in the state had fallen from Rs 674.83 crore in 2023-24 to Rs 366.02 crore in 2024-25.
Gautam slammed the government for “not revising” scholarship income eligibility criteria and increasing financial assistance in line with inflation.
He also highlighted alleged examination paper leaks and recruitment tests cancelled since 2018. He alleged that repeated irregularities had undermined students’ preparation and career prospects. Citing figures on student suicides, he claimed that an average of 132 students died by suicide every month in the state.
Dubey accused the BJP government of failing to protect students’ interests, alleging that ‘examination scams’ and the ‘rising cost’ of education were pushing young people into distress. He also called for accountability over alleged links between people associated with those in power and paper-leak cases.