Lok Sabha Question No. 211 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-07-18
Subject: Fellowships/Scholarships to SC/ST/OBC and Minorities
Ministry: Education
Asked by: Uttam Kumar Nalamada Reddy

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 211 TO BE ANSWERED ON 18 th  JULY, 2022

## Fellowships/Scholarships to SC/ST/OBC and Minorities

## 211. SHRI UTTAM KUMAR REDDY NALAMADA:

## Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:

(a) the details of various fellowships and scholarships offered to higher education students from Scheduled  Caste  (SC),  Scheduled  Tribe  (ST),  other  Backward  Class  (OBC)  and  Minority communities; (b) the details of each fellowship including the number of slots, stipend offered, eligibility criteria and the number of fellowship slots given out each year since 2014; (c) whether the Post-Doctoral Fellowship offered to SCs, STs, OBCs and minorities has not been notified since 2017, and if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor; (d)  whether  the  aforementioned  fellowship  will  be  notified  for  2022-23,  and  if  so,  the  details thereof; (e)  whether  the  Government  has  any  plan  to  increase  the  number  of  slots  and  stipend  offered under these fellowships, and if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; and (f)  whether  the  Government  is  planning  to  remove  the  National  Eligibility  Test  (NET)  as  a mandatory prerequisite for these fellowships for SCs, STs, OBCs and minorities, and if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION (DR. SUBHAS SARKAR)

(a) & (b): The Government is implementing various fellowship and scholarship schemes for providing  financial  assistance  to  all  categories  of  students  including Scheduled Caste(SC),

Scheduled Tribe (ST), Other Backward Class (OBC) and Minority communities. The details of these  schemes including  the  number  of  slots,  assistance  offered  and  eligibility  criteria are available in the following websites:

|   Sl. No. | Ministry/ Department                      | Website links                                                                 |
|-----------|-------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|         1 | Department of Higher Education            | https://www.education.gov.in/en/pm-usp-scholarships-education-loan            |
|         2 | University Grants Commission              | https://www.ugc.ac.in/page/scholarships-and-fellowships.aspx                  |
|         3 | All India Council for Technical Education | https://www.aicte-india.org/bureaus/rifd/Scholarship-Schemes                  |
|         4 | Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment  | https://socialjustice.gov.in/scheme-cat                                       |
|         5 | Ministry of Tribal Affairs                | https://tribal.nic.in/ScholarshiP.aspx                                        |
|         6 | Ministry of Minority Affairs              | https://www.minorityaffairs.gov.in/en/schemesperformance/scholars hip-schemes |

(c)  to  (f):  The  University  Grants  Commission  (UGC)  is  implementing  the  Post-Doctoral Fellowship for  SC/ST students  who have qualified  Ph.D.  The  UGC  has informed that  the  last selections  under  the  Post-Doctoral  Fellowship  were  held  in  2017-18  and  the  Post-Doctoral Fellowship Scheme, open for all categories of students, will be notified for 2022-23. The UGC has further informed that the National Eligibility Test (NET) is not a mandatory prerequisite for post  doctoral  fellowships  offered  by  the  UGC.  The  NET  examination  is  a  prerequisite  for  the Junior Research Fellowship (UGC-JRF) Scheme to do PhD.