DELHI: The Government of India’s scholarship schemes for minority students in Jammu and Kashmir have witnessed a dramatic decline in both the number of beneficiaries and the funds allocated over the past five years. The data, presented in the Rajya Sabha, highlights a significant reduction in the reach of the Pre-Matric and Post-Matric Scholarship Schemes in the region, raising concerns about the future of educational opportunities for minority students.
In 2019-20, under the Pre-Matric Scholarship Scheme, 523,653 students from Jammu and Kashmir received scholarships amounting to Rs 129.16 crore. However, by 2022-23, these numbers had plummeted to just 8,402 beneficiaries with an allocation of Rs 3.11 crore. This represents a staggering drop of over 98 percent in both beneficiaries and expenditure.
Similarly, the Post-Matric Scholarship Scheme has also seen a sharp decline. In 2019-20, 111,052 students from Jammu and Kashmir were supported with Rs 72.51 crore. By 2022-23, only 5,722 students received scholarships under this scheme, with funding reduced to Rs 3.28 crore. This marks a reduction of nearly 95 percent in both beneficiaries and funds.
The year-wise data for Jammu and Kashmir under these schemes is as follows:
Pre-Matric Scholarship Scheme:
In 2019-20, there were 523,653 beneficiaries with Rs 129.16 crore allocated.
In 2020-21, the number dropped to 466,290 beneficiaries with Rs 96.24 crore.
In 2021-22, it further declined to 389,132 beneficiaries with Rs 77.67 crore.
By 2022-23, only 8,402 students benefited with an allocation of Rs 3.11 crore.
Post-Matric Scholarship Scheme:
In 2019-20, there were 111,052 beneficiaries with Rs 72.51 crore allocated.
In 2020-21, the number fell to 53,725 beneficiaries with Rs 30.38 crore.
In 2021-22, it dropped further to 47,574 beneficiaries with Rs 27.47 crore.
By 2022-23, only 5,722 students benefited with an allocation of Rs 3.28 crore.
The Merit-cum-Means Scholarship Scheme for professional courses also saw a decline in Jammu and Kashmir. In 2019-20, it supported 7,702 students with Rs 19.91 crore. By 2022-23, only 2,837 students benefited under this scheme with an allocation of Rs 7.10 crore.
The sharp reduction in scholarships comes at a time when educational empowerment is critical for socio-economic upliftment in regions like Jammu and Kashmir. These scholarships have historically played a vital role in enabling access to education for underprivileged minority communities.
The nationwide implementation of these schemes has also seen a decline in recent years. Notably, the Pre-Matric Scholarship Scheme was not implemented at all for the fiscal year 2023-24 across India.
In a separate question, the government revealed that under the Merit-cum-Means based Scholarship Scheme, Jammu and Kashmir recorded 7,702 beneficiaries receiving Rs 19.91 crore in 2019-20, which increased to 8,898 beneficiaries with Rs 22.14 crore sanctioned in 2020-21. The number further rose to 9,392 beneficiaries in 2021-22, with Rs 23.83 crore sanctioned. However, in 2022-23, the number of beneficiaries fell to 2,837, and the sanctioned amount was Rs 7.10 crore.
