Akhilesh Yadav's free smartphone scheme to cost Rs 6,000 crore

The free smartphone scheme floated by the ruling Samajwadi Party (SP) government in Uttar Pradesh would cost the state exchequer over Rs 6,000 crore. 

This would be more than double the kitty of Rs 2,800 crore incurred on the free laptop scheme announced by the aspirant SP in run up to the 2012 UP polls. However, the scheme would materialise only if the SP government returns to power.

The free smartphone scheme was announced by UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav in 2016, much before the dates for the 2017 state polls were announced by the Election Commission (EC). The scheme is aimed at repeating the success of its flagship free laptop and tablet scheme in 2012.

The Akhilesh government has said that the smartphone would facilitate faster dissemination of government information and providing an easy platform for availing of the various utility services electronically.

Meanwhile, the registration process for the free smartphone scheme would continue till January 31, 2017 and the government is targeting total registrations of 25 million.

Although the specifications for the smartphones to be distributed to beneficiaries are still not known, the price is likely to be in the region of Rs 2,500 apiece.

"The applicable cost of the smartphone would largely depend upon specifications. However, my sense it that it could cost anywhere ranging from Rs 2,500 to Rs 3,000 per unit for a basic smartphone," Indian Cellular Association (ICA) president Pankaj Mohindroo told Business Standard over the telephone.

The pre-poll promise of a free laptop and tablet was credited with the stupendous win by SP in 2012 polls, when it had displaced the incumbent Mayawati-led government by winning 224 seats in the 403 member legislative assembly.

Although, the free tablet scheme could never take off, the Akhilesh government had provided free laptops to about 1.5 million students passing class XII during the 2011-12 academic session at a cost of nearly Rs 2,800 crore.

The free laptop scheme has been pruned considerably and is applicable to only meritorious students.

While, there is no upper age limit under the free smartphone scheme, but the applicant must be class 10th passed with family income of less than Rs 6 lakh per annum.

So far, about 12 million registrations had already been clocked under the scheme.