National Fellowship for SC, its income criteria and financial elements, 'under revision': Govt

The ministry of social justice and empowerment (MSJE), through the ministry of education, has told parliament that the National Fellowship for SC, including its income criteria and financial aspects, are "under revision”.

In response to a question raised in parliament, the education ministry told Rajya Sabha: "The scheme is under revision which also includes financial components and income criteria for the 16th finance commission cycle.”

MSJE offers the NFSC fellowships to students as per the approved intake, eligibility criteria, and in accordance with the guidelines.

NFSC fellowships are offered to 2,000 Scheduled Caste (SC) students pursuing MPhil and PhD programmes in Sciences, Humanities and Social Sciences across colleges and universities recognised by the University Grants Commission (UGC).

NFSC fellowships

For JRF and SRF, the fellowship reward amounts are Rs 25-28 thousand, for each month, including house rent allowance (HRA) as per norms. The fellowship is tenable for a period of five years. Its continuation each year for selected candidates is subject to satisfactory performance, as recommended by the competent authorities.

The fellowship intake under the NFSC has been approved in accordance with the Expenditure Finance Committee (EFC) approval for the financial cycle 2021-22 to 2025-26.

The 3% of fellowships are offered to SC students as per the reservation policy set by the government. Students can raise their fellowship claim between 1st to 15th of every month, after which the amount is disbursed after processing the cases.

The SC fellowship scheme will be revised based on recommendations of evaluation reports and procedures laid down in consultation with all concerned ministries and departments, the ministry said in its reply.