The Central Government has clarified the status of scholarship applications and unpaid scholarship dues for Scheduled Castes (SCs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and Persons with Disabilities (PwDs), while also providing details of budget allocations for de-addiction centres and welfare schemes for senior citizens.

In a written reply to Dr. Menaka Guruswamy in the Rajya Sabha, the Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, Shri Ramdas Athawale stated that the Pre-Matric Scholarship for Scheduled Castes & Others and the Post-Matric Scholarship for Scheduled Caste Students are Centrally Sponsored Schemes that are open-ended and demand-driven.

He stated that the scholarships are released through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) into Aadhaar-seeded bank accounts of beneficiaries adding that the release of the Central share is contingent upon the concerned State Government or UT Administration releasing its share and uploading the finally verified paid data on the National Scholarship Portal.

Under the Central Sector Scheme of Scholarships for Higher Education for Young Achievers Scheme for SCs (SHREYAS-SC), the Government stated that no scholarship application is pending and there are no unpaid scholarship dues.

On allocations for de-addiction centres, the Government clarified that there has been no reduction in budget allocation during the last three years.

For welfare schemes for senior citizens, the allocation stood at ₹705.11 crore in 2023-24, ₹539.44 crore in 2024-25 and ₹557.42 crore in 2025-26, amounting to a total allocation of ₹1,801.97 crores over the three-year period.

 

 

The Government further informed that the Prime Minister Young Achievers Scholarship Award Scheme for Vibrant India for OBCs and others (PM-YASASVI) comprises four sub-schemes—Pre-Matric, Post-Matric, Top-Class Education in Colleges and Top-Class Education in Schools for OBC, EBC and DNT students.

The Pre-Matric and Post-Matric components are Centrally Sponsored Schemes, with processing, verification, sanction and disbursement undertaken by the respective State Governments and UT Administrations, while the Central Government releases funds to the States and UTs. The Top-Class Education in Schools and Top-Class Education in Colleges components are Central Sector Schemes.

With regard to students with disabilities, the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD) is implementing the Central Sector “Scholarship Scheme for Students with Disabilities”. Applications received under the scheme are processed in accordance with the prevailing scheme guidelines, subject to fulfilment of prescribed eligibility conditions and submission of complete applications. Sanction and release of scholarships are undertaken continuously during the academic year.

The Government's response highlights the demand-driven nature of key scholarship schemes, the DBT-based mechanism for scholarship disbursement, and the continuous processing of eligible applications under the respective schemes.

PR-68-TAR-KV-GA

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