Bhubaneswar, Aug 31: Poor and meritorious students belonging to the Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) communities have received a major relief from the Odisha government.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has directed that such students seeking admission to government medical and engineering colleges will not be required to deposit admission, tuition or other fees at the time of admission or for up to six months thereafter.
The decision is aimed at addressing the financial difficulties faced by meritorious SC and ST students who qualify for highly competitive entrance examinations but often struggle to arrange the money required at the time of admission.
Despite overcoming several challenges and securing admission to professional courses, many students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds are unable to immediately pay the required fees.
Under the Chief Minister's directive, eligible poor students from the SC and ST communities will be allowed to complete their admission without making an immediate fee payment. They will also be given a period of up to six months after admission before tuition and other applicable fees need to be deposited.
The measure is particularly significant because these students generally receive scholarships from both the Central and State governments. However, the process of sanctioning and disbursing scholarship funds often takes around three to four months. As a result, students may face a gap between securing admission and receiving the financial assistance they are entitled to.
With the new arrangement, students will be able to pay their admission and tuition fees after receiving their scholarship money, thereby reducing the immediate financial burden on their families.
The state government is expected to issue detailed guidelines regarding the implementation of the decision very soon.
