Students belonging to economically weaker sections among forward communities will not get their merit scholarship for 2018-19 owing to financial crunch.
The scheme, implemented by the Kerala State Welfare Corporation for Forward Communities, ran into trouble earlier in the year when the government imposed a 20% Plan cut.
The State government had given administrative sanction to the corporation to launch seven merit scholarship during 2018-19 worth ₹13.60 crore for students of the economically weaker sections among the forward communities studying in higher secondary and other higher education courses. The total number of beneficiaries came to over 50,000.
According to government sources, over 20,000 students belonging to the higher secondary scheme were excluded from the scholarship owing to fund shortage. The government initially rejected the demand for release of the ₹13.60 crore, but after intense lobbying by the corporation, agreed to release ₹5 crore.
Options
But even the ₹5 crore sanctioned by the government failed to get clearance of the Ways and Means section. Since the new financial year began on Monday, the government can either shoot down the corporation’s schemes or earmark funds for paying the 2018-19 merit scholarship from the budget allocation for 2019-20. Sources said the delay in payment of scholarship would defeat its very purpose.