The Kasturba Balika Yogna (KBY) was approved in 2004-2005 by the Ministry of Human Resource Development to focus on girls' education in backward blocks where girls' education ratios and facilities were lacking. The program aims to establish residential schools that provide free education, hostel facilities, food, clothing, books, scholarships and health services to girls from scheduled castes, tribes, physically handicapped, backward classes, or low-income families, with 75% of students coming from these groups. By 2014-2015, over 3,500 KBY schools had been established across India serving over 350,000 girls.