Vijay clears ₹2,000 crore Vetri scheme of free laptops for college students

Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay has ordered the implementation of the ‘Vetri Laptop Scheme’, which will give free laptops to college students, with ₹2,000 crore set aside for it.

The scheme was announced in the State’s 2026-27 Budget. Students in the first and second years of undergraduate and diploma courses in the 2026-27 academic year are eligible, according to the government. The State-run Electronics Corporation of Tamil Nadu (ELCOT) has been given administrative approval to buy the laptops.

The background

Free laptops for students have a long history in Tamil Nadu. The AIADMK government under J. Jayalalithaa distributed laptops to school and college students from 2011, and the scheme became one of the State’s best-known welfare programmes before it was wound down.

The Vetri scheme is among the first big-ticket welfare measures of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government, which came to power in the 2026 Assembly election. “Vetri” means victory, echoing the party’s name.

What’s next

ELCOT will now float tenders. The government has not said when distribution will begin or how many laptops it expects to buy; at a typical price for a student laptop, ₹2,000 crore would cover several lakh machines.