Centre releases revised scholarship guidelines for SC students

The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has revised guidelines for the Top Class Scholarship Scheme for Scheduled Caste students for the 2024–25 academic cycle. The revised framework expands financial assistance, restructures the eligibility rules, and intensifies scrutiny of participating institutions.

The changes come at a time when the government is seeking greater efficiency in student support schemes and higher accountability among funded institutions. With enhanced monitoring provisions, along with capped allocations, the ministry is trying to ensure that the benefits reach deserving SC students enrolled in India's leading colleges and universities.

Improved financial regulations

Under the revised guidelines, the Centre will directly transfer the entire tuition fees and all the non-refundable charges to the students under the DBT system. In private institutions, the support will be capped at ₹2 lakh per year.

In addition to the fee coverage, the beneficiary will get an academic allowance of ₹86,000 in the first year and ₹41,000 in subsequent years toward living expenses, books, and laptops/study material. Students who receive benefits from similar central or state scholarships will thus not be eligible.

Eligibility thresholds and institutional criteria

The scheme will continue to be open for Scheduled Caste students whose annual family income is up to ₹8 lakh. Only candidates who are admitted to notified institutions, which include IITs, IIMs, AIIMS, NITs, National Law Universities, NIFT, NID, IHMs and accredited universities, will qualify.

Fresh scholarships will be limited to first-year entrants; renewals will then continue annually, provided satisfactory academic progress is maintained. Transferees who would have changed institutions upon selection will no longer be qualified.

Allocation caps and gender-based distribution

The ministry has allocated 4,400 fresh slots for 2024–25 out of the scheme’s sanctioned 21,500 slots for the five-year period from 2021–22 to 2025–26. Of the annual allocation, 30 per cent has been reserved for SC girl students. Institutions have been authorized to convert unfilled girl slots to boys if adequate female applicants are not available.

In order to address equity, the scheme will not extend the benefits to more than two siblings from the same household. Institutional responsibilities and steps towards compliance The revised guidelines impose a series of stringent responsibilities on institutions. Colleges would have to authenticate caste and income certificates, prominently advertise the scheme in their prospectus, and monitor the academic performance of beneficiaries. Institutions are supposed to provide special help to academically weaker students through bridge courses, mentoring, or remedial aid.

Any institution found flouting the guidelines faces de-notification, though students who are already beneficiaries at such institutions will continue to draw funding until the completion of their course. Institutions that do not have a mandatory AISHE code or fail to apply for three consecutive years may be removed under the scheme. Increased oversight and audit requirements The ministry strengthened the monitoring through social audits, periodic reviews, and a more empowered steering committee for assessing compliance. Tightened oversight aims to check misuse and streamline fund flow, apart from ensuring that eligibility norms are adhered to at all participating institutions. 

Impact on SC students The revised framework offers broader financial support and clearer operational guidelines, with substantially lower economic barriers that hamper access to top-tier institutions for SC students. Combining direct financial delivery with rigorous institutional accountability, this scheme will be positioned to improve both the reach and reliability of higher education support for SC scholars across the country.