Minister for Social Welfare H.C. Mahadevappa met Secretary to the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India, Saurabh Garg in New Delhi and urged him to clear the e-rupi scheme for Karnataka in a bid to remove bottlenecks in the implementation of the scholarship programme.
Mr. Mahadevappa, who is also the Minister in charge of Mysuru district, met Mr. Garg on Tuesday and submitted a detailed proposal on implementation of e-rupi scheme in Karnataka on a pilot basis.
The e-rupi scheme ensures that the scholarship amount given to the students through Direct Benefit Scheme (DBT) helps clear the tuition fee.
With the Centre and State government sharing the financial burden of the Social Welfare Department’s post matric scholarship programme on a 60:40 ratio, the Centre’s share of 60% is paid directly into the bank accounts of the students under the DBT since 2021-22. But, educational institutions have complained that the students are not transferring the amount to clear the tuition fees, said a statement issued from the Minister’s office.
Hence, the educational institutions have been demanding the Dalit students to clear the tuition fees at the time of admission. However, the State government has warned the colleges against demanding tuition fees at the time of admission.
In view of the hurdles plaguing the scholarship programme, several Dalit students are facing the prospect of losing access to higher education, the statement said.
Hence, Mr. Mahadevappa has urged the Centre to implement the e-rupi scheme in Karnataka on an experimental basis.
The e-rupi has been described as a “cashless and contactless” payment solution to students receiving scholarship from the government. The scheme had been enabled jointly by the Department of E-Governance, Government of Karntaka, National Payments Corporation of India (NCPI) and State Bank of India (SBI).
The scheme will ensure a leak-proof delivery of tuition fees of the students by paying digitally to the college by the government.
With regard to Babu Jagjivan Ram Chatrawas Yojana for construction of hostels for Scheduled Castes, Mr. Mahadevappa said the Centre was providing a grant of ₹3 crore for construction of every hostel with a capacity of 100 students while the State government’s Public Works Department was releasing ₹6.5 crore.
He urged the Centre also to release ₹ 6.5 crore towards the construction of hostels under the scheme.
Mr. Mahadevappa also urged the Centre to release funds for construction of classrooms in residential schools run by the Social Welfare Department in the State.
Mr. Garg has responded positively to the appeal made by Mr. Mahadevappa, the statement said. The meeting was also attended by Joint Secretary to the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment Kalyani Chadha and Principal Secretary to the Department of Social Welfare, Government of Karnataka, P. Manivannan.
