Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS)

What are Eklavya Model Residential Schools?

Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) are fully residential schools for Scheduled Tribe students from Class VI to Class XII, run by the National Education Society for Tribal Students (NESTS), an autonomous body under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. According to the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, the scheme started in 1997-98 to give quality education to ST children in remote areas so they could compete for higher and professional courses and for employment.

The NESTS dashboard reports 728 EMRS locations approved, 511 functional schools and 1,63,896 students enrolled. Each school has a sanctioned capacity of 480 students, and EMRSs are built to be on par with Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas, with separate hostels for boys and girls, a mess, playgrounds and residential accommodation for teaching and non-teaching staff.

The Ministry decided that every block with more than 50% ST population and at least 20,000 tribal persons should have an EMRS. Where the ST population density in an identified sub-district is 90% or more, an Eklavya Model Day Boarding School (EMDBS) may be set up instead, for students who want the same education without residential facilities.

Key objectives

• Provide free, quality residential schooling to Scheduled Tribe children in remote and tribal-majority blocks.
• Prepare ST students for higher and professional courses.
• Support all-round development, including sports, skill development and the preservation of local art and culture.

Main features

• Free education, no fee is prescribed under the EMRS scheme.
• Class VI to Class XII, with all three streams at senior secondary level.
• Class VI intake of 60 students in two sections of 30, boys and girls equal.
• Admission strictly by entrance test, not by interview or recommendation.
• A Centre of Excellence for Sports in each state with Sports Authority of India-standard facilities for one individual and one group sport.

Who is eligible for EMRS admission?

Your child can apply if:

• The child belongs to a Scheduled Tribe, with a valid ST certificate.
• For Class VI, the child is currently studying in Class V.
• The child meets the age limits prescribed for the batch in the admission guidelines for that academic year.
• The child's block, district or state matches the seat quota being applied against; 50% of seats are block-level, 30% district-level and 20% state-level.

Your child cannot apply if:

• The child is already studying in a class higher than Class V and is applying for Class VI. NESTS clarified this explicitly in its 23 July 2025 circular.
• The child is not a Scheduled Tribe and does not fall under the small reserved categories described below.
• The child's age falls outside the prescribed limits for that batch.
• The child is seeking a transfer from another EMRS: inter-EMRS transfer is not permitted under the admission policy.
• The child had a transfer certificate issued on parental request and now wants to rejoin the same class in the same school; NESTS states that once a TC is issued on request, continuing education there is not feasible.

For Class XI, NESTS has clarified that a candidate who took a break of a year or two after Class X may still be admitted if the age falls within the prescribed limit for that batch.

What is the reservation pattern in EMRS admission?

The revised reservation criteria approved at the 15th Governing Body Meeting of NESTS apply across all EMRSs:

Two further rules apply. 5% of seats to 3 out of 60 to are reserved for children with benchmark disability, carved out as 2 seats from the ST quota and 1 from others. And children of EMRS, EMDBS and CoE staff and of doctors and paramedical staff of government hospitals serving in the same block are admitted over and above the sanctioned strength of 30 per section, subject to a ceiling of 40 students in one section.

Transgender students cannot be denied admission if they meet the eligibility conditions, and are counted under the boys' or girls' quota.

What documents are required for EMRS admission?

How to apply for EMRS admission

Admission to EMRS is administered by the state or union territory EMRS Society, which conducts the EMRS Selection Test (EMRSST) for Class VI. The notification, portal and dates differ by state, so always start from your state society's advertisement.

1. Watch for the EMRSST admission notification issued by your state or UT EMRS Society, usually published on the state tribal welfare department website and in local newspapers, and linked from nests.tribal.gov.in.
2. Fill the registration form for the entrance test, online or offline as your state prescribes. No fee is charged for the registration form to appear in the entrance exam.
3. Attach the supporting documents — ST certificate, birth certificate, Class V bonafide certificate and residence proof, in the format the state notification specifies.
4. Download the admit card from the state EMRS Society portal once it is released and note the exam centre and reporting time.
5. Appear for the EMRS Selection Test. The question paper is based on competencies at the level prescribed by NCERT or SCERT for Class V; there is no separate prescribed syllabus.
6. Check the merit list published by the state EMRS Society. Selection is strictly on the basis of the entrance test result, applied against the block, district and state quotas and the reservation categories.
7. Attend document verification at the allotted EMRS with all originals, and complete admission formalities within the timeline announced by the society.

How to apply for lateral entry to Class VII, VIII, IX or XI

1. Confirm that vacancies exist. Lateral entry is allowed only against seats that are actually vacant, and vacancies are assessed keeping the reservation criteria and the 1:1 boys-to-girls ratio intact.
2. Apply to the EMRS or the state EMRS Society when it advertises lateral entry admission for the academic year.
3. Appear for the EMRS Lateral Entry Test (EMRSLT) for Classes VII to IX, conducted by the school or society as permitted by the state society.
4. For Class XI, follow the procedure notified for students of State Boards, CBSE, ICSE, NIOS and other recognised boards. NESTS policy provides for 90 students in Class XI across Science, Humanities and Commerce.
5. Submit the transfer certificate and complete verification at the allotted school.

What does a student get in an EMRS?

EMRS students receive free education and free residential facilities; no fee is prescribed under the EMRS scheme. Each school provides separate hostels for boys and girls, mess facilities, playgrounds and on-campus teaching staff. Schools are equipped for sports and skill development, and the scheme specifically funds facilities for preserving local art and culture.

At state level, NESTS supports a Centre of Excellence for Sports with state-of-the-art facilities, equipment, scientific back-up, specialised training, boarding and lodging, sports kit, competition exposure, insurance and medical expenses as per Sports Authority of India norms, for one identified individual sport and one group sport per state.

Common reasons EMRS applications are rejected

• Child is already in a class above Class V while applying for Class VI.
• Age outside the prescribed limit for the batch.
• ST certificate not from the competent authority or issued in a different state from the one where the seat is claimed.
• Residence proof does not match the block or district quota being claimed.
• No vacancy in the class for a lateral entry application.
• Application filed after the state society's deadline; timelines are fixed in the NESTS admission guidelines for each academic year.

Help and grievance redressal

• NESTS: nests.tribal.gov.in: admission guidelines, circulars and the list of EMRS schools
• Ministry of Tribal Affairs: 011-23383303, support lines 011-23381652 and 011-23381903
• State or UT EMRS Society nodal officer for admission, result and verification queries
• EMRS Principal for school-level grievances

NESTS periodically publishes fake alerts on its website about fraudulent notices, including fake exam results. Verify any EMRS notice against nests.tribal.gov.in before acting on it, and never pay anyone for an EMRS seat; admission is only by entrance test.