S. Divyabharati, who was
thrilled two weeks ago, when she got admission to ECE branch in a leading
engineering college near here, is no longer excited. She is clueless after
coming to know that she should pay Rs. 88,500 as fee upfront.
Ms. Divyabharati, who belongs to the Scheduled Caste and resides
near Red Hills, knows she cannot mobilise the amount. Her father is watchman in
a private firm, earning Rs. 4,000 a month.
She knows there is a scheme for first generation graduates,
under which the government takes care of tuition fee, which is now Rs. 45,000.
What she does not know is that there is another scheme, a Post-Matric
Scholarship, offering more benefits for SC students than others.
As part of the Post-Matric Scholarship Scheme devised by the
Centre and implemented through States, the compulsory non-refundable fee — what
is charged towards registration/enrolment, tuition, games, union and library
membership, medical examination and any other fee compulsorily payable — is
covered, apart from a host of other fees.
A senior official in the Adi Dravidar Welfare (ADW)
Commissioner’s office clarifies that transport charges are not covered. In
Divyabharati’s case this comes to Rs. 19,000 a year.
Ashok Kumar, the son of a daily-wage labourer in Tiruvallur
hailing from the Arunthatiyar community (part of SCs), is also in the same
state of unpreparedness as Ms. Divyabharati is. He has been allotted civil
engineering and asked by another private college to pay Rs. 72,000 in 10 days.
“I don’t even have enough money to travel by bus. I do not know how I am going
to remit the fees,” he laments.
At present, the students have to apply through their colleges
for the Post-Matric Scholarship scheme.
More than their level of awareness regarding this scheme or
that, the serious problem being faced by students such as Ashok Kumar and
Divyabharati is that they are in no condition to remit the fees on their own at
the time of admission. The managements of private colleges, to which several
students interviewed byThe Hindu have gained admission, are not
ready to admit them without collecting the fees, even if they know that they
will be able to get the fees reimbursed by the government as such students are
eligible for coverage under one scholarship scheme or the other.
This year, most private self-financing engineering colleges have
asked students to pay the fees latest by August 14.
“How can they pay so much money when their families struggle for
daily sustenance? Many of them find paying Rs. 5,000 itself very difficult,” says
D. Sherin, founder, Velicham, an NGO that works to facilitate higher education
of underprivileged students.
The principal of a self-financing college says generally,
colleges spare first generation graduates of the tuition fee. In respect of
other schemes, the funds transfer from the government invariably comes late.
“Last year, many colleges reimbursed students many months after
admission and students had to pay almost two years’ fees.”
To a question why the State government should not make
arrangements for direct payment of fees for SC students, the official in the
ADW Commissionerate replies that the administration is contemplating various
steps. More students will be encouraged to open savings bank accounts so that
their scholarship money can be credited through ECS. Already, SB accounts have
been opened for about 24,000 students covered under the scholarship scheme.
On Monday, the Commissionerate will hold a meeting with bankers
and the National Informatics Centre (NIC) to discuss online transfer of money.
Though the official points out that his office has set up a stall on the Anna
University campus, the venue of engineering counselling, to disseminate
information on the scholarship scheme, he agrees that much more requires to be
done to increase the level of awareness. The process for getting the
scholarship should also be simplified.
A senior government official says funds are very much available
with the implementing departments, which have to do some more coordination
involving college managements, higher education officials and district
authorities.
source: The Hindu Dt 05.08.2012
To TheEditor, Dt:05.08.12
The Hindu,
Chennai-600 002.
letters@thehindu.co.in
Sub: - Scholarship scheme for SC/ST students-Reg.
Ref: - News item appeared in The Hindu Dt
5.8.12 under the heading
“Scholarship
scheme benefits elude poor SC students.”
Sir,
I appreciating your esteemed daily
for bringing out the plight of SC/ST students in joining professional courses
due to heavy fees demanded by colleges and availability of scholarships for
reimbursement of fees paid by the poor students.
The
successive government continuously neglecting the interest of the SC/ST
students. Tamil Nadu Government has not taken any concrete action for
formulating any schemes for payment of fees in advance for deserving students
from SC/ST communities. Government of
tamil Nadu leading in many fields and set an examples for various welfare
activities of the poor people but it is continuously not giving much attention
on SC/ST students.
There
were always delay in implementing various welfare scheme towards SC/ST. Previously the Adi-dravida department of
Government of Tamil Nadu had issued eligibility card (E-Card) to those SC/ST
student for joining in Government Colleges, the students submitting the e card
need not pay any fees at the time of admission, and such fees will be adjusted
in the scholarships. This system can be
introduced now for making payment to the colleges admitting SC/ST students.
When
Anna university and Directorate of
medical service conducting counseling for admission for Engineering and medical colleges, why the
Adi-Dravida Department in consultation with both these organizations has
not put up a camp of their office and
issue eligibility card to those student getting admission in the colleges.
If it is not found feasible they can work out a scheme in which the
eligible students can get their eligibility card from respective district
administration and the Adi-dravida welfare department can make payment to the
colleges submitting eligibility card of the student along with scholarship
application with in a stipulated time.
To
avoid delay in issuing e card and making payment to the private colleges the
Adi-dravida department should think of
creating a fund for this purpose
and make payment to the colleges at the beginning of the year. When the district administration issuing
community certificate at the school for plus two students a similar action can
also be taken by camping by the Adi-dravida department’s employee in the
counseling centre and issue eligibility card to SC/ST, in this way the problem
faced by SC/ST students can be avoided and ensure maximum enrolment of these
students in professional colleges.
The
state government which is misusing funds earmarked for SC/ST welfare always
choose to hiding the allotment of funds
for scholarship to SC/ST students by central government on the plea the credit
for scholarships will go to the party
ruling central government ,which is the
main reasons they are not making such scheme so popular among SC/ST
students, unfortunately the Central Govt is also failing on this account, it is
never bothered the amount allotted
towards scholarships were utilized or not.
It
is high time the Government of Tamilnadu and Adi-dravida department to work out
a scheme to make payment to the private colleges and facilitate hassle free
admission of SC/ST students.
I
request your esteemed daily to publish the expert opinion on how best the
scheme of scholarship should reach the poor SC/ST students especially to
professional courses and the practice made by other states in admitting SC/ST
students in self financing colleges.
Copy to: 1.The
Secretary
Adi-Dravida department
Secretariate,Chennai-600 009
adisec@tn.gov.in
2. The
Director,
Adi-dravida welfare Dept
Ezhilagam,Chennai-600 005.
3. The
Chairman
National SC commission and National ST commission
New Delhi-110005
chairperson@ncst.nic.in
4.The Hon Minister for Social justice and
empowerment
New Delhi-110001
