CDS welcomes Cabinet decision to grant scholarships
Hyderabad: Centre for Dalit Studies (CDS) Chairman Mallepalli Laxmaiah welcomed the decision of Central Cabinet Committee approving the 60:40 sharing by Centre and States in the “post matric scholarship scheme to students belonging to Scheduled Castes (PMS – SC)”.
The committee approved Rs.59,048 crore post matric scholarship scheme for a total of more than four crore students in next five years. Laxmaiah has further suggested that the Central government should have a monitoring committee to implement the scheme in the State level as the 60 per cent of the amount will be spent by Centre and remaining by the State governments.
He urged the Centre to release its share of 60 per cent in April every year to kick start the scholarship facility for SC student. Any delay in release will jeopardize the scheme the way it has reduced the release to only Rs 1,100 crore in three academic years of 2017-20.
Laxmaiah said the government should be flexible to increase the amount every years as the SC enrollments will increase every year, as was seen in the earlier years. He mentioned that Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka were already having Scheduled Castes Sub-Plan and Tribal Sub-Plan (Planning, Allocation and Utilisation of Financial Resources) Act and were able to successfully spend the amount allocated to SCs and STs empowerment.
He urged the Centre to issue an ordinance for Scheduled Castes Sub-Plan and Tribal Sub-Plan at the national level and enact it in the next session. This will give an assurance to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes development in the country.
Simultaneously, the Central Government should advice all other States also to enact such an Act to help in implementation of schemes without any scarcity of funds.
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