Centrally-Sponsored Scheme Of Pre-Matric Scholarship For Scheduled Caste Students Studying In Classes 9th & 10th

What is the Pre-Matric Scholarship for Scheduled Caste students?

The Pre-Matric Scholarship for Scheduled Caste Students studying in classes 9th and 10th is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. The scheme supports Scheduled Caste students at the class 9-10 stage, where the risk of dropping out before matriculation is highest, by paying an annual academic allowance directly into the student's bank account.

According to the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, the objective is to reduce the dropout rate among Scheduled Caste students during the transition from elementary to secondary education, so that more students complete class 10 and move on to higher study. The scheme is implemented by State Governments and Union Territory administrations, which receive central funds and disburse the scholarship to eligible students.

Key features

• Consolidated academic allowance of Rs 3,500 per year for day scholars and Rs 7,000 per year for hostellers.
• Income ceiling of Rs 2.5 lakh per year for the parent or guardian.
• Covers Scheduled Caste students studying full-time in class 9 and class 10.
• Payment is by Direct Benefit Transfer into an Aadhaar-seeded bank account.
• Centrally Sponsored Scheme with central and state cost-sharing, generally 60:40 for most states.

Who is eligible for the Pre-Matric SC Scholarship?

You can apply if:

• You belong to a Scheduled Caste notified for the state where you study.
• You are studying full-time in class 9 or class 10 at a government-run or government-recognised school.
• Your parent or guardian's annual income does not exceed Rs 2.5 lakh from all sources.
• You are an Indian national.

You cannot apply if:

• Your family income is above Rs 2.5 lakh a year.
• You are already receiving another pre-matric scholarship funded by the central government, only one centrally-funded pre-matric scholarship is allowed at a time.
• You are studying in a class other than 9 or 10, in which case a different scheme may apply.
• You do not belong to a Scheduled Caste, in which case parallel schemes exist for Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes and children of families in unclean occupations.

Students with disabilities (Divyang) are given an additional allowance over and above the standard rate, in line with the scheme guidelines.

How much benefit does the Pre-Matric SC Scholarship provide?

The revised scheme pays a consolidated academic allowance rather than several small heads. A day scholar receives Rs 3,500 per year and a hosteller receives Rs 7,000 per year. The allowance is meant to cover the cost of books, stationery, and related expenses that push families to withdraw children from school at the secondary stage.

The scholarship is credited directly to the student's Aadhaar-seeded bank account through Direct Benefit Transfer, which removes intermediaries. Because the amount depends on whether a student is a day scholar or a hosteller, the school's certification of the student's status matters at the verification stage.

What documents are required?

How to apply for the Pre-Matric SC Scholarship

1. Check whether your state accepts applications through the National Scholarship Portal (scholarships.gov.in) or through a separate state scholarship portal — the route differs by state.
2. On the National Scholarship Portal, complete the One Time Registration (OTR) using your Aadhaar number to get a registration ID.
3. Log in and select the Pre-Matric Scholarship for SC students scheme for the current academic year.
4. Fill in your personal, academic and bank details, and enter your parental income exactly as shown on the income certificate.
5. Upload the caste certificate, income certificate, enrolment proof and bank passbook, then submit the application before the notified deadline.
6. Your school (Institute Nodal Officer) verifies the application, after which the district and state authorities approve it.
7. Track the status on the portal; on approval the allowance is transferred by DBT to your Aadhaar-seeded account.

Deadlines are announced each academic year and differ by state, so check the portal notice for your state before applying. Renewal students must reapply each year with their latest result.

Help and where to check

• National Scholarship Portal helpline: 0120-6619540
• State Social Welfare / SC Welfare department for state-specific queries and the list of documents accepted locally
• School nodal officer, who verifies your application and can tell you why a submitted form was returned

There is no fee to apply. No agent can charge you to "add your name" to the scholarship list, and the school verifies applications free of cost.

How to check your application status

Once you have submitted the form on the National Scholarship Portal (NSP) or your state's portal, the application moves through several verification stages, and you can track exactly where it stands at each point.

1. Log in to the portal at scholarships.gov.in with your registration ID and password, and open the "Application Status" or "Track Status" section from your dashboard. This shows the current stage: submitted, pending at Institute Nodal Officer, forwarded to district, approved at state level, or payment released.
2. Watch for SMS and portal alerts. The NSP sends status updates by SMS to the mobile number linked at registration whenever your application moves to the next stage, such as when the school verifies it or when the state approves it.
3. Ask your school's Institute Nodal Officer if the status has not changed for several weeks. Most rejections and holds happen at this first verification step, and the nodal officer can tell you directly if a document was found incomplete or a field does not match your certificates.
4. Contact the NSP helpline on 0120-6619540 if the portal shows no update or an error, and keep your registration ID and application ID ready when you call.
5. Check your bank account and DBT status once the application shows "approved". The allowance is credited by Direct Benefit Transfer, so if approval is shown but no amount has arrived, the likely cause is an Aadhaar-seeding issue with your bank account rather than a problem with the application itself, and this is worth confirming at your bank branch.
6. For state-portal applicants, use the state's own scholarship portal login to track status, since applications routed through a state portal do not always mirror on the NSP dashboard, and the state Social Welfare or SC Welfare department is the point of contact for delays.

Common reasons for rejection

• Income certificate shows income above Rs 2.5 lakh, or is issued in the wrong format. Even a small excess over the ceiling leads to automatic rejection at verification. Fix: get a fresh income certificate from the competent revenue authority that clearly states the annual family income, and reapply only if the family's actual income is within the limit; income cannot be understated to qualify.
• Caste certificate does not name a caste notified as Scheduled Caste in the state where the student is studying, since SC lists vary by state and a certificate valid in one state may not be accepted in another. Fix: confirm your caste appears on the current SC list for the state of study, and obtain a certificate from a competent authority in that state if you have moved.
• Bank account is not Aadhaar-seeded, or Aadhaar number does not match across documents. DBT fails silently even after approval if the account and Aadhaar are not linked, and mismatched Aadhaar numbers between the registration and the application form cause verification to stall. Fix: get the bank account Aadhaar-seeded before applying, and double-check the Aadhaar number entered on the portal against the Aadhaar card.
• School enrolment or bonafide certificate is missing, expired, or does not confirm full-time study in class 9 or 10. Fix: request an updated bonafide certificate from the school specifically stating the class and full-time status for the current academic year, and upload it before the deadline rather than after.
• Application submitted after the state deadline. The NSP sets an overall window, but each state can close its own deadline earlier, and late submissions are rejected without review even if the portal itself is technically still open. Fix: confirm the exact deadline for your state from the school or state welfare department rather than relying on the national opening date alone.
• Already receiving another centrally-funded pre-matric scholarship. The scheme rules allow only one central pre-matric scholarship per student, so an application is rejected if cross-checks show the student drawing a similar benefit elsewhere. Fix: choose only one centrally-funded pre-matric scholarship to apply for, and if in doubt, ask the school nodal officer which scheme applies to you.
• Details on the form do not match the uploaded documents, such as a spelling of the name, date of birth, or father's name differing between the Aadhaar card, caste certificate, and the application form. Fix: copy details exactly as printed on the official documents rather than from memory, and correct any mismatch before final submission since edits are often not possible afterward.
• Documents uploaded are unclear, cropped, or the wrong document type. Fix: upload clear scans or photographs of the actual required document for each field, and recheck each upload before submitting rather than after the nodal officer flags it.