The Ministry of Education organised a one-day national workshop in New Delhi to review and strengthen the implementation of the National Means-cum-Merit Scholarship Scheme (NMMSS), aimed at supporting meritorious students from economically weaker sections.
The workshop, held on March 10, was organised by the Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSEL) and brought together state, Union Territory and district-level officers responsible for implementing the scholarship scheme. The deliberations were chaired by DoSEL Secretary Sanjay Kumar.
During the meeting, officials reviewed the progress of the scheme and discussed measures to ensure its effective implementation at the grassroots level in line with the National Education Policy 2020. The discussions also focused on the performance of states and Union Territories, particularly regarding quota utilisation and continuity of scholarships for students from Classes IX to XII.
Senior officials who participated in the deliberations included Economic Advisor A. Srija, Principal Chief Controller of Accounts Bhupal Nanda and Deputy Director General (Statistics) Pankaj K. P. Shreyaskar.
Shreyaskar highlighted the evolution of the UDISE+ system into a real-time digital platform that helps monitor school education data more efficiently. Meanwhile, Srija emphasised the importance of timely verification of applications on the National Scholarship Portal to ensure that eligible students receive their scholarship payments without delays.
An interactive session with state nodal officers also provided an opportunity to discuss challenges faced at the grassroots level and explore practical solutions for improving the implementation of the scheme.
The National Means-cum-Merit Scholarship Scheme is a central sector initiative designed to reduce dropout rates after Class VIII and encourage students from economically weaker sections to continue their education at the secondary level. Under the scheme, one lakh fresh scholarships are awarded each year to students entering Class IX, with the benefit continuing up to Class XII in government, government-aided and local body schools.
Each selected student receives ₹12,000 annually under the scheme. Students whose parental income from all sources does not exceed ₹3.5 lakh per year are eligible to apply. Candidates must secure at least 55 per cent marks in the Class VII examination to appear for the selection test, with a five per cent relaxation for students from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
The workshop also featured technical sessions on the operation of the PAO-DBT module through the Public Financial Management System, Aadhaar seeding of beneficiary bank accounts by the National Payments Corporation of India, and best practices in implementing the scheme shared by states including Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.
The Ministry said the initiative reflects DoSEL’s unwavering commitment to ensuring timely, transparent, and student-centric implementation of central scholarship schemes across the region.
