‘Uncertainty among students’: MP Fauzia Khan urges Kiren Rijiju to open minority scholarship application early

Member of parliament Fauzia Khan has urged the minister of parliamentary affairs, Kiren Rijiju, to open the online application portal for minority scholarships early for the current academic year 2025-26. The delay in opening the portal is causing uncertainty among students and educational institutions, leading to missed academic deadlines and financial distress for deserving beneficiaries.

In a letter to the minister of parliamentary affairs , Khan said that students from minority communities across the country are waiting for the opening of the application process. Khan has asked the minister to clarify the expected timeline for opening the portal, so that students and stakeholders can plan accordingly.

Khan further wrote that the scholarships for minority students play an important role and offer them access to education, especially those belonging to economically disadvantaged backgrounds. MP has requested the intervention of the ministry to ensure the early opening of the minority scholarship portal.

Also read Pre, Post-Matric Scholarships for minorities disbursed to thousands of ineligible or fake beneficiaries: CAG

Scholarships for Minorities 2025-26

The ministry of minority affairs offers pre-metric and post-metric scholarships to students belonging to the minority communities. The scholarships are awarded to students who have secured not less than 50% marks in the previous final examination.

The annual income of applicants' parents or guardians from all sources should not exceed Rs 1 lakh and Rs 2 lakh for pre-matric scholarship and post-matric scholarship, respectively. However, as per the Education Budget 2025, the provisions for scholarships for minority students have been declining over the years.

In the current financial year, the budget for the pre-matric scholarship for minorities was reduced to Rs 90 crore, a cut of Rs 236.16 crore from the estimate. Even in 2023-24, the actual spending of Rs 337.17 crore was lower than the amount that had been allocated for that year. The post-matric scholarship for minorities had followed a similar trend. The revised estimate for the current year saw a cut of Rs 801.09 crore from its original allocation.