Training Assistance for Competitive Examinations

What is Training Assistance for Competitive Examinations?

Training Assistance for Competitive Examinations is a Gujarat state scheme run by the Gujarat Unreserved Educational and Economical Development Corporation (GUEEDC) under the Social Justice and Empowerment Department. The scheme pays up to Rs 20,000 towards the coaching fee of a candidate from Gujarat's non-reserved classes, the group referred to locally as bin anamat, who is preparing for a recognised competitive examination.

According to the GUEEDC portal, the scheme covers coaching for UPSC, GPSC Class 1, 2 and 3 examinations, railway recruitment, banking recruitment, the Gujarat Subordinate Services Selection Board (GSSSB) and the Panchayat Service Selection Board. In other words, it is the government-jobs track, and it is deliberately separate from GUEEDC's coaching scheme for JEE, GUJCET and NEET, which serves science-stream school students on the medical and engineering route.

GUEEDC exists because reserved-category candidates already had corporation-run coaching support through the state's SC, ST and OBC development corporations, while economically similar candidates from non-reserved classes had none. The corporation was created to run that parallel set of programmes, and it now also offers education loans of up to Rs 10 lakh at 4 per cent simple interest, foreign education loans of up to Rs 15 lakh, hostel food-bill assistance of Rs 1,200 a month for 10 months, and self-employment loans of up to Rs 10 lakh. The policy body behind these schemes is the Gujarat State Commission for Unreserved Classes, functioning from Block 1, Karmayogi Bhavan, Sector 10, Gandhinagar since 4 April 2018.

Who is eligible for the training assistance?

You can claim if:

• You belong to a non-reserved (general) class of Gujarat and hold the certificate to that effect from the competent revenue authority.
• You are a resident of Gujarat.
• Your annual family income is within GUEEDC's notified ceiling, published by the corporation and widely stated as Rs 4.5 lakh.
• You hold the educational qualification required for the examination you are training for; normally a graduation degree for UPSC and GPSC Class 1 and 2 posts.
• You are enrolled at a recognised coaching institute that meets the scheme's conditions.
• You are preparing for one of the listed examinations — UPSC, GPSC Class 1 to 3, railway, banking, GSSSB or Panchayat Service Selection Board.

You are not eligible if:

• You belong to SC, ST, OBC or any other reserved category. Parallel schemes run under other Gujarat corporations for those groups, and claiming under both is not permitted.
• Your family income exceeds the notified ceiling.
• You are not resident in Gujarat.
• Your coaching institute is not recognised under the scheme.
• You are preparing for JEE, GUJCET or NEET. Use GUEEDC's Coaching Help Scheme for JEE-GUJCET-NEET Exams instead.
• You have already drawn the same assistance and are not covered by a repeat claim permission from your District Implementing Officer.

How much is paid and how?

The benefit is Rs 20,000 or the actual coaching fee, whichever is lower. A candidate paying Rs 25,000 receives Rs 20,000 and bears the rest. A candidate paying Rs 9,500 receives Rs 9,500. The amount is transferred directly to the candidate's own bank account, which is why the passbook submitted must carry the applicant's name rather than a parent's or a guardian's.

This is a fee-support scheme, not a stipend. It does not cover hostel rent, travel to the coaching centre, exam application fees or study materials bought separately. Candidates staying in hostels should look at GUEEDC's separate food bill assistance of Rs 1,200 a month for 10 months, which addresses a different cost.

How to apply for Training Assistance for Competitive Examinations

1. Obtain your non-reserved class certificate from the competent revenue authority and a family income certificate from the Mamlatdar. These two take the longest, so begin with them rather than with the coaching admission.
2. Verify that your coaching institute is recognised under the scheme before you pay any fee. Ask GUEEDC or your District Implementing Officer if you are unsure, a fee paid to an ineligible institute cannot be recovered later.
3. Register as a new user on gueedconline.gujarat.gov.in. Note down your username and password, since the same login is used later to check status.
4. Complete your profile with personal, educational, category and bank details, entered exactly as they appear on the underlying documents.
5. Select the competitive examination training assistance scheme from the scheme list and open the application form.
6. Fill the form and upload the documents, Aadhaar, non-reserved class certificate, income certificate, degree certificate, institute admission letter and fee receipt, bank passbook and Gujarat residence proof.
7. Submit and save the acknowledgement number, and print or screenshot the confirmation page.
8. Answer any query raised by the District Implementing Officer promptly. Applications most often lapse because a query went unanswered, not because the candidate was ineligible.

How do I check my application status?

Log in again at gueedconline.gujarat.gov.in with your registered username. The portal shows the stage of each application filed under that account and carries a "How To Apply" guide in Gujarati. GUEEDC also publishes a district-wise directory of Implementing Officers as a downloadable PDF, and the officer for your district is the right person to chase a file that has not moved.

For telephone follow-up, GUEEDC publishes an administrative helpline on 079-23258684 and 079-23258688, staffed from 10.30 am to 2 pm and 3 pm to 6 pm on government working days. Technical support is not available on holidays. Keep your acknowledgement number to hand when you call.

Why applications get rejected, and how to fix them

• Wrong category certificate. A general residence or caste-neutral letter is not a non-reserved class certificate. Obtain the correct one.
• Expired income certificate. Income certificates have a validity period, and an old one is a routine rejection ground. Obtain a fresh certificate for the application year.
• Unrecognised coaching institute. Verify recognition before enrolling, not after.
• Exam not on the covered list. Coaching for private-sector tests, entrance exams or professional certifications is out of scope.
• Bank account not in the applicant's name. The transfer is to the candidate, so a parent's account will fail validation.
• Name or date-of-birth mismatch across Aadhaar, degree certificate and bank records. Correct the source records first; the portal will not reconcile them for you.
• Duplicate benefit. A candidate who already holds a coaching subsidy from another government source for the same course will be rejected.

Where do I complain or get help?

• GUEEDC helpline: 079-23258684, 079-23258688 (10.30 am to 2 pm and 3 pm to 6 pm on working days)
• Application portal: gueedconline.gujarat.gov.in
• Corporation site: gueedc.gujarat.gov.in
• Gujarat State Commission for Unreserved Classes: +91 079 232 58647, memsec-gscuc@gujarat.gov.in, Block No. 1, 6th floor, Karmayogi Bhavan, Sector 10, Gandhinagar
• District Implementing Officer, listed in the PDF directory on the GUEEDC portal

Registration and application are free. No coaching institute or agent is authorised to charge a commission for arranging the Rs 20,000 assistance, and no GUEEDC officer will ask for your portal password or an OTP.