The BJP is often accused of being a ‘Brahmin-Bania’ party with scant regard for social justice. However, the BJP government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emerged as a torch-bearer of social justice with its approach towards the marginalised communities in the country.
For comparison, there have been accusations of the alleged misuse of funds allocated for SC welfare even in a state like Tamil Nadu where the government claims that social justice thrives and prevails. However, the Modi government has been consistently spending for the welfare of the SC community, especially towards the SC student community.
Under the NDA government, the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment is actively working to significantly enhance the Gross Enrolment Ratio of Scheduled Caste (SC) students in higher education, particularly those from economically underprivileged backgrounds. To achieve this goal, they have implemented the Centrally Sponsored Scheme known as “Post-Matric Scholarships for SC Students for Studies in India.”
Additionally, the Department has introduced the Centrally Sponsored Scheme for Pre-Matric Scholarships for SC students and others. This scheme is designed to provide financial assistance to parents belonging to Scheduled Castes and other disadvantaged categories, supporting the education of their children at the pre-matric stage.
The achievements under these schemes include releasing scholarships to a total of 34,58,538 SC beneficiaries, amounting to ₹3546.34 Cr under the Post-Matric Scholarship scheme, and 18,32,628 beneficiaries receiving scholarships amounting to ₹369.03 Cr under the Pre-Matric Scholarship scheme, from the year 2023 until 22.12.2023. The Aadhaar-based payment system is being employed to ensure direct disbursement of scholarship funds to students through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) into their Aadhaar-seeded accounts.
Notably, seven States/UTs, namely Assam, Chandigarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, and Odisha, have exceeded their annual targets under the Post-Matric SC scheme for the year 2022-23. Moreover, under Component-II of the Pre-Matric Scheme, which addresses children with parents engaged in cleaning and hazardous occupations, the number of participating States has increased from one in 2022 to nine in 2023, aiming to provide scholarships to disadvantaged students.
The Department has conceived the ‘Scholarship for Higher Education for Young Achievers Scheme (SHREYAS)’ as an umbrella scheme to facilitate the convergence of resources from four smaller Central Sector Schemes catering to SC/OBC students interested in pursuing higher education (both in India and abroad) and seeking employment in Group A/Group B services of central or state governments. The scheme comprises the following components:
Top Class Education For SCs:
- The Department has revised the scheme guidelines, adding 44 new institutes to the empanelled list, bringing the total count to 266. Scholarships have been extended to 3999 beneficiaries.
Free Coaching Scheme For SCs And OBCs:
- The Department has updated the scheme guidelines, and starting from the financial year 2023-24, the Dr. Ambedkar Foundation (DAF) will administer the scheme through empanelled Central Universities. Scholarships have been granted to 483 beneficiaries from January 2023 onwards.
National Overseas Scholarship For SCs
- The National Overseas Scholarship (NOS) Scheme provides financial assistance to selected students from SCs (115 slots), De-notified, Nomadic, and Semi-Nomadic Tribes (6 slots), and other specified categories (4 slots) for pursuing master’s and Ph.D. level courses abroad. Currently, 125 slots are allocated under the scheme, and 107 students have received scholarships for the academic year 2023-24.
National Fellowship For SCs
- This scheme offers financial fellowships to students from the Scheduled Caste category pursuing higher studies leading to M. Phil. And Ph.D. in Science, Humanities, and Social Science streams in Indian Universities/Institutions/Colleges recognized by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
- Implemented by the National Scheduled Castes Finance and Development Corporation, the scheme provides 2000 new slots annually for candidates who have qualified the National Eligibility Test-Junior Research Fellowship (NET-JRF) of UGC and Junior Research Fellows for the Science stream qualifying UGC-Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (UGC-CSIR) Joint Test. The revised rates under the scheme are ₹37,000/- p.m. for JRF and ₹42,000/- p.m. for SRF, effective from 1st January 2023.
DoSJE has actively implemented the Scheme for Residential Education for Students in High Schools in Targeted Areas (SHRESHTA) with the aim of extending the government’s development interventions and addressing service gaps in education within SC-dominant areas. This initiative involves collaboration with grant-in-aid institutions, mainly run by NGOs, and residential high schools that provide high-quality education. The primary objective is to create an environment conducive to the socio-economic upliftment and overall development of Scheduled Castes (SCs).
Achievements under the scheme include the admission of a total of 2564 students in 142 Private Residential Schools affiliated with CBSE/State Boards for the academic session 2023-24. The department has reimbursed school fees amounting to ₹30.55 Crore for these students.
These initiatives and achievements reflect the commitment of the Modi government to uplift marginalized communities and empower them for a brighter future.
(With inputs from PIB)
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