PM Young Achievers Scholarship Award Scheme for Vibrant India (PM-YASASVI)

What is PM-YASASVI?

PM Young Achievers Scholarship Award Scheme for Vibrant India (PM-YASASVI) is an umbrella scholarship scheme of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment for students belonging to Other Backward Classes (OBC), Economically Backward Classes (EBC) and Denotified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Tribes (DNT).

According to the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment, PM-YASASVI was formed by clubbing the existing scholarship and hostel schemes for these categories into one scheme with a common set of guidelines and a single application route on the National Scholarship Portal.

PM-YASASVI covers five components:

1. Pre-Matric Scholarship for OBC, EBC and DNT students.
2. Post-Matric Scholarship for OBC, EBC and DNT students.
3. Top Class School Education for OBC, EBC and DNT students.
4. Top Class College Education for OBC, EBC and DNT students.
5. Construction of Hostels for OBC boys and girls.

The component most families search for is Top Class School Education, which pays up to Rs 75,000 per year in Classes 9 and 10 and up to Rs 1,25,000 per year in Classes 11 and 12 towards tuition, hostel charges and other prescribed school fees.

Key objectives

• Keep OBC, EBC and DNT students in school through the high-dropout years of Class 9 to Class 12.
• Put meritorious students from these categories into good-quality schools and colleges without the family bearing the fee burden.
• Provide hostel capacity so that students from rural areas are not blocked by the cost of living away from home.

Main features

• Family income ceiling of Rs 2.5 lakh per year across components.
• Selection is merit-based on the previous qualifying examination.
• Payment through Direct Benefit Transfer into the student's Aadhaar-seeded account.
• Single online application on scholarships.gov.in, with school-level verification.

Who is eligible for PM-YASASVI?

You can apply if:

• You belong to the OBC, EBC or DNT category and hold a valid caste certificate from the competent state authority.
• Your family income is Rs 2.5 lakh a year or less, backed by an income certificate.
• You are studying full-time in a recognised government, government-aided or private school or institution, in the class the component covers.
• You have a One Time Registration (OTR) number on the National Scholarship Portal, generated against your Aadhaar or Aadhaar Enrolment ID.
• Your bank account is Aadhaar-seeded so DBT can reach it.

You cannot apply if:

• You belong to the General, SC or ST category; PM-YASASVI is restricted to OBC, EBC and DNT students, and other categories must look at the separate SC and ST scholarship schemes.
• Your family income exceeds Rs 2.5 lakh a year.
• You are enrolled in a correspondence or distance-mode course rather than a full-time one.
• You are already drawing another merit-based central scholarship for the same course, since the National Scholarship Portal allows only one merit-based scholarship at a time.
• Your caste or income certificate is issued by an authority not recognised by your state government.

What documents are required for PM-YASASVI?

How to apply for PM-YASASVI online

1. Go to the National Scholarship Portal at scholarships.gov.in and select One Time Registration (OTR).
2. Complete OTR using your Aadhaar number or Aadhaar Enrolment ID and finish the face authentication step to receive your 14-digit OTR number. This number stays valid for your whole academic career.
3. Log in with the OTR number, choose Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and then the PM-YASASVI component that matches your class, Pre-Matric, Post-Matric, Top Class School or Top Class College.
4. Fill in personal, academic, category, income and bank account details exactly as they appear on your certificates and passbook.
5. Upload the caste certificate, income certificate, previous marksheet, bonafide certificate and bank passbook.
6. Preview the whole application, correct anything that does not match your documents, then submit and save the application ID.
7. Ask your school or institute nodal officer to verify your application on the portal, an unverified application does not reach the ministry.
8. Track the status on scholarships.gov.in under your OTR login until it shows verified and then sanctioned.

How to apply through a Common Service Centre

1. Carry your Aadhaar, caste certificate, income certificate, marksheet and bank passbook to the nearest Common Service Centre.
2. Ask the operator to complete your OTR and then the PM-YASASVI application.
3. Pay only the notified service charge of Rs 30 per application.
4. Collect the printed acknowledgement showing your application ID.

How much benefit does PM-YASASVI provide?

Under the Top Class School Education component, PM-YASASVI pays up to Rs 75,000 a year for Classes 9 and 10 and up to Rs 1,25,000 a year for Classes 11 and 12. The amount covers tuition fees, hostel and mess charges where applicable, and other prescribed school charges.

The Pre-Matric and Post-Matric components pay lower, class-linked rates fixed by the ministry, and the hostel component funds construction rather than an individual payment. Because the rates for the Pre-Matric and Post-Matric components are revised from time to time, check the current rate on the notification published with your year's application window before you apply.

All payments are made through Direct Benefit Transfer into the student's Aadhaar-seeded bank account.

How is selection done under PM-YASASVI?

Selection under PM-YASASVI is merit-based. The YASASVI Entrance Test (YET), which was used in earlier cycles, has been discontinued, and candidates are now ranked on the marks scored in the previous qualifying examination — Class 9, Class 11 or Class 12 as applicable to the component. Merit lists are drawn state-wise so that students across regions get representation.

How to check your PM-YASASVI application status

1. Log in at scholarships.gov.in with your OTR number.
2. Open Check Your Status on the dashboard.
3. Read the stage shown; pending at institute, verified by institute, pending at state or ministry, or sanctioned.
4. If payment shows sanctioned but not received, track the transaction on the PFMS portal.

Common reasons PM-YASASVI applications are rejected

• Institute verification not done before the portal window closed, the most common single reason.
• Income certificate above Rs 2.5 lakh or issued by a non-competent authority.
• Caste certificate mismatch with the category selected in the form.
• Bank account not Aadhaar-seeded, so DBT fails.
• Name mismatch between Aadhaar, marksheet and bank records.
• Duplicate merit-based scholarship already drawn for the same course.

Help and grievance redressal

• National Scholarship Portal helpdesk: 0120-6619540, 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM on all days except government holidays.
• NSP helpdesk email: helpdesk@nsp.gov.in
• PFMS payment helpline: toll free 1800 118 111 for money sanctioned but not credited.
• Scheme information: socialjustice.gov.in, Department of Social Justice and Empowerment.

Applying for PM-YASASVI is free on scholarships.gov.in. No agent can charge you to have a scholarship sanctioned, and no official will ask for your OTP.