Agartala, December 27:In a fervent demonstration, hundreds of youths from the Scheduled Caste (SC) community gathered before the Directorate for the Welfare of SCs in Gorkha Basti. Their primary demand was the immediate disbursement of the SC post-matric scholarships, originally scheduled for payment in June or July.
The protesters, voicing their discontent, raised slogans and expressed agitation, emphasizing that despite several months passing, they have not received their post-matric scholarships.
The demonstrators highlighted their frustration, citing two prior meetings with the director of the SC Welfare department, who had assured them of the imminent release of scholarship funds. Despite these assurances, seven months later, the promised funds have not materialized.
Adding to their grievances, the agitators pointed out that students from the Scheduled Tribe (ST) and Other Backward Classes (OBC) categories have already received their scholarships, deepening the sense of disparity. Many of the protesting students incurred loans, both from banks and personally, anticipating the scholarship to settle these debts. However, the prolonged delay has left them grappling with financial hardships.
In response to the situation, the protesters conveyed their readiness to escalate their agitation if their demands continue to be ignored.
With the protest becoming more intense large number of policemen gathered at the scene and later, the demonstrators met with the director of SC Welfare.
Meanwhile, Ashim Saha, the Additional Secretary and Director of SC Welfare, acknowledged the delay in scholarship disbursement.
He revealed that out of a total of 17,747 SC candidates eligible for the scholarship, 14,577 received approval from the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and have received the scholarship. However, approximately 3,200 candidates, including 1,068 whose bank accounts are not linked with Aadhar, are slated to receive their scholarships by January 15.
Saha clarified that all candidates have received the 10% share allocated by the state government but the remaining 90% central government share got delayed due to some technical issues and has been resolved now.
