Prime Minister's Special Scholarship Scheme for J&K Benefits 13,014 Students: Govt.

As per the data of the Union Government, a total of 13017 students have benefitted from the Special Scholarship Scheme for Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). The scheme was launched in 2011 for the students of J&K.

The aim of the scheme was to motivate the youth of Jammu and Kashmir and help them in pursuing higher education in universities and colleges outside the state.

Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey, Human Resources Development Minister of State, mentioned in his written reply to the Rajya Sabha that the Government has taken various other initiatives to make sure that the all the deserving students of J&K are benefiting from the scholarship scheme.

The minister further added that more students of the state are stepping out to take admission in professional courses with the help of initiatives such as the creation of ten supernumerary quota in Engineering Colleges.

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Talking about the scheme, the minister said that 5000 fresh scholarships are provided under this scheme every year. This includes 4500 scholarships for general students, 250 for engineering aspirants in the state and 250 for students seeking admission in medical programmes.

The Government has also given the provision for the inter-changeability of slots. If there aren’t enough students for scholarships under general courses, the numbers are balanced by taking more students in professional courses.

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In the academic session 2014-15, a total of 1680 students benefitted from this scheme. Whereas, in the session 2014-2015, 1,402 students were offered scholarships. Last year, up to 2,240 students got benefited from the scholarship scheme.