Published On : Tue, Nov 3rd, 2020

SC, ST, OBC students being deprived 2nd installment of DBT

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Nagpur: The Social Welfare Department provides scholarships are to the students belonging to the Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Backward Classes (OBC) etc to ensure that higher education is not denied to them due to the poor financial condition of their families. The scholarships are provided by Central and State Governments through DBT.

However, due to the poor financial condition of the State Government for the past few years, the students as well as colleges are being deprived of this benefit. As a result, the college managements are in trouble. The second installment of the year 2019-20 has still not been given. Moreover, the DBT portal for the year 2020-21 has not been opened as yet.

It is pertinent to recall that during the tenure of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, the DBT was being provided to students/colleges in two installments. But the second installment of scholarship for the year 2019-20 has not been paid as yet. Similarly, the DBT portal for the year 2020-21 has not been opened till to date. The online education for the academic year 2020-21 is going on continuously since the past four months during corona time. The teachers too continued to impart education to students even though they have not been paid salaries for six months by college managements.

Every year, the DBT portal used to be opened in the first week of July. The Social Welfare Department of State Government provided scholarships to over 2 lakh students.

The college managements have urged the release of the second installment of scholarships for the year 2019-20 immediately for smooth running of affairs. However, the concerned departments of State Government are asking the college managements to seek long term loans to run their affairs. And those seeking Rs 10 crore loan are being pressured by banks to mortgage properties worth Rs 25 crore. The issue has not been resolved amicably till to date.