Government doubled pre-matric scholarship for SC, ST, and OBC students in Bihar

A great announcement has come for SC, ST, and OBC students of Bihar. The state cabinet has given the go ahead for the state's entire budget to the tune of 2, 271 crores to double the amount of pre-matric scholarships for these social groups. Out of this, 519.64 crores has been earmarked for the revision of scholarship rates for SC/ST students and the remaining 1, 751.56 crores will be used to support the students of OBC and EBC categories, respectively.

This will be a big relief to the children of below poverty line families. At the time of his interaction with the media, Arvind Chaudhary, Additional Chief Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat Department, shared in detail about the matter.

Chaudhary further mentioned that the cabinet has approved 519.64 crores for revising the scholarship rates, which will increase the monthly amount for the first to fourth grades to 1, 200, for the fifth and sixth grades to 2, 400, seventh to tenth grades to 3, 600, and for the residential students to 6, 000 per annum.

More than 27 lakh students of these categories will be the direct beneficiaries of this step.

He noted that these revised rates are based on 2011 data and will benefit approximately 27 lakh students. The approved budget for OBC and EBC students will amount to ₹1,751.56 crores.

Proposal to Increase Monthly Hostel Subsidy

According to an official announcement from the Bihar government, a proposal is underway to increase the monthly hostel subsidy for OBC and EBC students from 1, 000 to 2, 000.

Increase in Family Income Limit for Scholarships

Moreover, the annual family income limit for OBC and EBC students to be eligible for scholarships has been raised from 1.5 lakh to 3 lakh. An amount of 117.98 crores has been sanctioned for this change.

Discontinuance of Previous Scheme

The cabinet also decided to cancel a previous scheme worth 14.52 crores and instead approved a revised scheme worth 87.81 crores to set up a music college in Buxar, which would be named after Ustad Bismillah Khan.

New Policy for Multinational Companies

During the briefing, Kundan Kumar, Secretary of the Industry Department, mentioned that the GCC Policy 2026 has been approved to position Bihar as a destination for multinational and Indian companies looking to establish Global Capability Centers.