By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, March 21: The central government has released the last instalment of scholarship amounting to Rs 85.0779 crore under the ‘Umbrella Scheme of Post Matric Scholarship for ST Students for the Academic Session 2023-2024’.
Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma disclosed this through a post on X on Friday.
“I am happy to share that today, the central government has released the last instalment of scholarship amounting to Rs 85.0779 crore under the scheme Umbrella Scheme of Post Matric Scholarship for ST Students for the Academic Session 2023-2024,” he wrote.
Sharing the details, he said the total number of beneficiaries applied was 76,755.
He said the first instalment of Rs 42.32 crore was paid to 17,364 students and the second instalment of Rs 66.67 crore was paid to 32,064 students. He said the final instalment released on Friday will be paid to 27,327 students and the funds will reflect in their bank accounts in a day or two. “The state government is committed to improving and accelerating the scholarship process each year to ensure even quicker support for our talented students!” he further wrote.
Earlier, the BJP had trained its guns on the state government for allegedly not doing its part to ensure the scholarships are released on time and instead, blaming the Centre for the delay.
BJP vice president and Tura MDC Bernard N Marak had criticised the state government for delaying the disbursement of scholarships to ST students, calling it a betrayal of their rights and privileges. He had expressed concern over continued hardships faced by students due to the state’s alleged failure to fulfil its financial obligations.
Marak said when he enquired about the delay with the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, he was told that the Centre had cleared the list of beneficiaries submitted by the state on a priority basis. However, 90% of the funds provided by the Centre remained undistributed because the state failed to contribute its mandatory 10% share.