After tribal students’ protest, Maharashtra government raises hostel allowances

Mumbai: A day after police detained tribal students who had marched from Nashik to press for better hostel facilities and an inquiry into deaths at ashram schools and drove them out of the city, the state cabinet on Tuesday approved revision of allowances under the Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Swayam Scheme, which is implemented for Scheduled Tribe students.

For students pursuing education in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad, and Nagpur, allowance is now Rs 80,000, up from Rs 60,000 before. The food allowance is ₹42,000, up from ₹32,000; accommodation allowance is ₹28,000, up from ₹20,000; and subsistence allowance is ₹10,000, up from ₹8,000.

The state cabinet also increased annual grants under the ‘Bharat Ratna Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Swadhar Yojana’. This scheme is implemented to enable students belonging to Scheduled Castes and the Neo-Buddhist category to pursue higher education, specifically those who are eligible for govt hostels but could not secure admission to them.

Under this scheme, students pursuing education in Mumbai, Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Navi Mumbai, Thane, and Nagpur will now receive a total annual grant of ₹80,000. This amount comprises ₹42,000 for the food allowance, ₹28,000 for the accommodation allowance, and ₹10,000 for the subsistence allowance.