Against all odds, girl hailing from J-K's Udhampur qualifies Bank PO exam

Udhampur (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], April 18 : Pallavi Sharma, hailing from Jib village of Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur district, belonging to an extremely poor family, cracked the J-K Bank Probationary Officer (PO) exam, the result for which was declared earlier this month, without any coaching and brought laurels to not only her family but the entire district.
Ashu Sharma, Member, District Development Council (DDC), Tikri, Udhampur, speaking to ANI siad, "Pallavi has qualified Bank PO exam without any coaching. She belongs to a very ordinary family. She has brought laurels to not only her family but also to the village. We thank her for bringing a good name to our village. She has shown the determination of realising her dreams. I would like to congratulate her for that."

"I would like to give a message to the girls from various rural areas that show courage to give wings to your dreams. Avail maximum benefit of various educational schemes implemented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Union Territory. Girls in Jammu and Kashmir are actively participating in various activities. I would like to encourage them to keep moving ahead in life and live their dreams and aspirations," said Sharma.
Pallavi Sharma, who recently cleared the Bank PO exam, told ANI, "I belong to village Jib. I have completed my schooling from a government school and went on to complete my graduation in B.tech. I belong to a lower-middle-class family. I could not have been able to pursue B.Tech given my family's financial condition. It could only be possible due to the Prime Minister's Special Scholarship Scheme (PMSSS) for Jammu and Kashmir students. I would like to thank the Prime Minister and the Government of India for implementing such schemes which made it possible for me to be where I am today."
An Expert Group was constituted by the Prime Minister for enhancing employment opportunity among youths of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh and formulate job opportunities in public and private sectors. Subsequently, Prime Minister's Special Scholarship Scheme (PMSSS) is being implemented by the All India Council for Technical Education(AICTE), New Delhi.
Under the PMSSS Scheme, the youths of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are supported by way of scholarship in two parts namely the academic fee and maintenance allowance. The academic fee is paid to the institution where the student is provided admission after an online counselling process conducted by the AICTE.
Under this scheme, scholarship is provided to the eligible meritorious students having family income less than Rs. 8.0 lakh per annum, for pursuing higher studies. The amount of scholarship is Rs. 10,000 per annum for the first three years and Rs. 20,000 per annum for the fourth and fifth year.
The Scheme aims to build the capacities of the youths of J&K and Ladakh by Educating, Enabling and Empowering them to compete in the normal course.
"I cleared the Probationary Officer (PO) exam recently. There is a 10 per cent reservation for economically weaker sections (EWS) in Jammu and Kashmir. This has benefitted me to a large extent. I am extremely thankful to the Central government for such provisions due to which ordinary students like us who belong to financially weaker groups are able to fulfll our dreams," said an elated Pallavi.
For the advancement of Economically Weaker Sections of the society, and as per the Constitution 103rd Amendment Act 2019, the Government had made provision of 10 per cent reservation to EWS categories in admission to educational institutions.
"Other than financial problems, life has got many struggles, many ups and downs and various challenges. But I would say, we should never give up," she added.