Scholarships Worth Rs 12,773 Crore for 1.44 Crore SC Students

The Department of Social Justice and Empowerment has widened the reach of its scholarship schemes and changed the way three of them are run. The aim is to keep education within reach for students of the Scheduled Castes, the Other Backward Classes and the Economically Backward Classes, and to make the schemes work on time and in the open.

How far the money has gone

Both sets of figures come from the pre-matric and post-matric scholarship schemes, which support students before and after the matriculation stage so that money is not the reason a student stops studying.

The SHRESHTA reform

SHRESHTA is the scheme for residential education for students in high schools in targeted areas. Admission to it is through the National Entrance Test for SHRESHTA, known as NETS. The examination has been moved from May to December. An earlier test means counselling and admission can be finished inside the academic cycle, which cuts delay and lowers the number of students who drop out while waiting.

Two more reforms

• Under the National Overseas Scholarship Scheme, income and caste certificates are now verified on the spot with the authorities that issued them. This was brought in from the academic year 2024-25 and is meant to stop fraudulent claims and keep the benefit with genuine candidates going abroad for higher study
• Under the National Fellowship for SC Students, a grievance window of seven days is now mandatory after the results of the UGC-NET and the Joint CSIR-UGC NET are declared. It was introduced from the academic year 2025-26 and lets students report discrepancies within a fixed period

What it adds up to

Read together, the three changes follow one pattern. Each of them fixes a point in the process where a student used to lose time or lose out. Advancing the SHRESHTA test fixes the calendar. Verifying certificates at source fixes authenticity. A fixed grievance window fixes accountability after a result is declared. The department has said that these measures, along with the expanded financial assistance, are meant to build an education support system that is inclusive, efficient and centred on the student.