Why the Call for an Increased Income Ceiling for SC/ST/OBC Scholarships? Tamil Nadu CM's Letter Raises Key Concerns

Chennai- In a bid to address the growing disparities in access to higher education for marginalized communities, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting an increase in the annual income ceiling for Post-Matric and Pre-Matric scholarships for Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Other Backward Classes (OBC) students. Currently, the income ceiling for these scholarships stands at Rs. 2.5 lakhs per annum, a threshold that the Chief Minister argues is inadequate to address the socio-economic challenges faced by these communities.

The letter, highlights the government's recent move to revise the income ceiling for the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) to Rs. 8 lakhs per annum, in line with the guidelines for schemes such as the National Overseas Scholarship and Top-Class Education Scheme.

Stalin points out that while these revisions have benefited students from disadvantaged backgrounds, the same is not true for students from SC, ST, and OBC communities, whose representation in higher education remains significantly lower than that of the general population.

The letter references data from the All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) report, which indicates that the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) for SC, ST, and OBC students remains substantially lower compared to other sections of society. Stalin emphasizes that this disparity calls for an urgent and systemic intervention to ensure greater participation of these communities in higher education.

The Chief Minister argues that raising the income ceiling for Pre-Matric and Post-Matric scholarships from Rs. 2.5 lakhs to Rs. 8 lakhs would go a long way in addressing this gap. He contends that increasing the eligibility for scholarships will enable more students from these communities to pursue their education, thereby increasing their representation in higher education institutions and creating opportunities for social and economic mobility.

Education major instrument to overcome caste oppression: BANAE

Nagsen Sonare, the National President of the Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar National Association of Engineers (BANAE), Mumbai, has praised Stalin's call for action. Sonare noted that the media should highlight the issue, considering the plight of a 350-million-strong community in India. BANAE had also previously raised the issue in a letter to the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment in September 2024, but no response was received.

In the letter, Sanjay Sagar, National Secretary General, BANAE outlined their concerns over the income limit for SC, ST, OBC, and De-notified Nomadic Tribes (DNT) students, which has been fixed at Rs. 2.5 lakh per annum despite a government decision to raise the income ceiling for EWS students to Rs. 8 lakhs.

The letter emphasizes that while EWS students face only economic disadvantages, SC, ST, OBC, EBC, and DNT students suffer from a combination of social, educational, and economic challenges, which warrant a more generous income ceiling.

Moreover, the letter from BANAE raises questions about the financial constraints faced by these communities in accessing education. It calls for a reconsideration of the income ceiling, suggesting that it be raised to a minimum of Rs. 24 lakh per annum for SC, ST, OBC, and DNT students.

The mail read: " As the educationally, socially deprived classes of SC, STs, OBCs, EBCs and DNTs are required to create assets also like, land, house, residential plots, similar to that of EWS  in addition to the education of their wards, the financial Income limit for the parents/ guardians of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, EBCs and DNTs should be increased to minimum of Rs.24 lakh per annum as compared to Rs.8.0 lakh Financial ceiling of the parent/ guardians of EWS Category, who already have the identified assets of 5 acre land, residential house and residential plot as pr the DOPT Circular of 31^st January 2019 as above. 

This proposal is based on the argument that students from these communities are required to not only overcome financial barriers but also social and educational disadvantages, which makes the current income ceiling inadequate.

The issue of unequal scholarship distribution has long been a concern, with many students from marginalized communities struggling to access these opportunities due to the rigid income limits. The guidelines for Post-Matric scholarships for SC, ST, OBC, and DNT students, which were introduced in 2010, have not been revised to reflect the changing economic realities, despite provisions for such updates every two years.

BANAE has been demanding a revision of the monthly amount of the Post Matric Scholarship for SC-ST students based on the Consumer Price Index, which is calculated by the Labour Bureau, Shimla.

" The last revision was made in 2013, and since then, there has been no revision in the monthly scholarship amount. We met the President of India on 21st June this year and submitted a memorandum for the revision of the monthly scholarship amount for both hostellers and day scholars, sufficient enough to help students maintain themselves in towns and cities, where they face a tremendous increase in commodity prices, books, stationery, lodging, boarding costs, traveling, and miscellaneous expenses", Sonare stated. It has been emphasized time and again that the Post Matric Scholarship scheme is the single and sole scheme that has helped the SC-ST community pursue higher and technical education.