The Government High School in Maragowdanahalli in Malavalli taluk of Mandya district has earned a rare distinction. A total of 54 class eight students have been selected for the National Means cum Merit Scholarship (NMMS) for the 2018-19 academic year.
The scholarship is provided by the Union Ministry for Human Resource Development (MHRD). Under this scholarship, students get an annual scholarship of ₹12,000. They will get this amount from class nine till they complete second pre-university.
Only students from government and aided schools are eligible for the scholarship. After obtaining the scholarship, students have to secure first class every year to continue receiving the benefits.
Around 30% of the total 172 students who have bagged the scholarship from Mandya district are from this school.
A.S. Devaraju, headmaster of the school, said that the students are given training during the Dasara vacations. “Students who come to our school are from poor economic backgrounds. We decided to train them well so that they can benefit from the scholarship,” he said. Last year, 43 students from this school had bagged this scholarship.