What’s in the news?

• The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved major and transformatory changes in the centrally sponsored Post Matric Scholarship Scheme for students belonging to Scheduled Castes to benefit at least 40 million SC students in the next five years so that they can successfully complete their higher education.
• The Centre’s share of the cost of the scheme vis-a-vis that of the states had also been increased. The Centre will pay 60% of the scholarship amount while the states would bear 40% of the cost.
• Under the current formula, the Centre provides only funds above the ‘committed liability’, which in effect translates to about 11 per cent of the total cost. This led to many states ending the scheme. 
• The cabinet has approved a total investment of Rs 59,048 crore, of which the Centre would contribute Rs 35, 534 crore, or 60%, with the states providing the rest. The central assistance was around Rs 1,100 crore annually during 2017-18 to 2019-20.

About the scheme

• The Post Matric Scholarship Scheme for Scheduled Castes allows students to pursue any post-matric course starting from Class 11 and onwards.
• The central government is committed to giving a big push to this effort so that the gross enrolment ratio (GER) in higher education of SC students would reach the national standard within five years, the statement said. The GER ratio for SC students is around 20% while the national average is 27%.
• The focus of the scheme would be on enrolling the poorest students, timely payments, comprehensive accountability, continuous monitoring and total transparency. 
• A campaign will be launched to enrol the students, from the poorest households, passing the 10th standard in the higher education courses of their choice.
• According to government estimates, 13.6 million students currently not pursuing higher education would be able to do so in the next five years because of the revamped scheme.
• The scheme will be run on an online platform with robust cyber security measures that would assure transparency, accountability, efficiency, and timely delivery of the assistance without any delays.
• Transfer of financial assistance to the students under the scheme shall be in DBT [direct benefit transfer] mode, and preferably using the Aadhaar Enabled Payment System. 
• Community audits of the scheme would be conducted to make sure the benefits were reaching the students.