Centre restores scholarship plan, Punjab in catch-22 situation

Failing to get Rs1,500 cr for 3 yrs, state launched its own scheme last month

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Rajmeet Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 28

The Centre’s revised Post-Matric Scholarship Scheme for Scheduled Caste (SC) students announced last week has put the Punjab Government in a catch-22 situation.

Failing to get around Rs 1,500 crore from the Centre under the centrally-sponsored scheme for three years, the state government last month announced the state-funded Dr BR Ambedkar SC Post-Matric Scholarship for 3 lakh students. It would cost the state around Rs 500 crore annually.

Applications have been invited from intended beneficiaries under the state scheme for academic year 2020-2021. Under the scheme, the state would pay 60 per cent of the scholarship amount for the past three years, while the remaining amount would be contributed by the respective college.

In a new twist, the Centre has now restored its scholarship scheme with a revised funding pattern, till 2025-2026. Now, the Centre will contribute 60 per cent of the average demand for the past three years (2017-2018 to 2019-2020), while the remaining will have to be borne by the state.

“The states have been asked to send a formal acceptance of the new scheme by January 15, along with the actual demand for the past three years,” said a senior government functionary.

State’s Technical Education Minister Charanjit Singh Channi said, “After the state announced its own scholarship scheme, the Centre has rushed to restore its old scheme with reduced funding. It should have been a fully sponsored scheme.”

Dr Anshu Kataria, co-chairman of the Joint Association of Colleges, said, “Around 1,500 colleges have suffered over the past four years. The state should opt for the revised central scheme at the earliest as it would reduce the state’s liability, as compared with that under the newly launched state-sponsored scheme.”