Open category, OBCs get foreign education grant

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Meritorious students from open and OBC categories, who can't afford expensive education at foreign universities despite getting enrolled there, will get a hefty government scholarship to pursue the courses.

The state cabinet approved a proposal on Tuesday for 10 students each from the open category, OBC, Vimukta Jati & Nomadic Tribes, and Special Backward Class to be selected for the programme.

The decision is politically important in the wake of the Maratha quota agitation and other communities in the open category who do not get financial assistance from the government. The OBCs, too, haven't got such a sop so far; growing unrest has prompted the state to extend the scheme to them. Open category students whose annual family income is less than R20 lakh will be eligible. Others would need to qualify under the annual income's creamy layer criteria. Initially, the government will make a financial provision of R20 crore. Of the 20 seats, 30% are reserved for women.

SC and ST students already have such a scheme; no change has been suggested to it. The scholarship amount for the respective courses is expected to be on the lines of this scheme.

The first and foremost condition will be that the students who use the scholarship benefit the state. This means they won't be allowed to seek jobs abroad after completing graduation, post graduation or doctorate. The maximum duration for the scholarships will be four years for a doctorate programme, two years for a graduation course and a year for a PG degree/diploma. Eligibility will be decided on the applicant's marks in Std X and Std XII, graduation and PG, and the QS world ranking of the foreign university they get enrolled in.

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