Prime Minister's Scholarship Scheme for the Wards/Widows of Central Police Force Personnel

What is the PMSS for wards and widows of Central Police Force personnel?

The Prime Minister's Scholarship Scheme (PMSS) for the wards and widows of Central Police Force personnel is an education scholarship run by the Ministry of Home Affairs through its Welfare and Rehabilitation Board (WARB). Launched in 2006-07, the scheme supports the higher education of the children, and the widows: of the personnel who serve in the country's central police and paramilitary forces.

According to the scheme's terms, PMSS pays Rs 36,000 per year to each woman beneficiary (a girl student or an eligible widow) and Rs 30,000 per year to each male student; Rs 3,000 and Rs 2,500 a month respectively — for the duration of a professional course, up to a maximum of five years, paid directly to the beneficiary's bank account.

The scheme is financed from the interest income of the National Defence Fund. Alongside the main component for Central Armed Police Forces and Assam Rifles, the umbrella scheme also runs linked components for wards of State and Union Territory Police personnel and Railway Protection Force / Railway Protection Special Force (RPF/RPSF) personnel who die in the line of duty, so that a wider group of police families is covered.

Who is eligible for this Prime Minister's Scholarship Scheme?

A beneficiary can apply if they are a ward or widow of:

• Serving or retired Central Armed Police Forces or Assam Rifles personnel, generally up to the rank of personnel below officer rank (PBOR).
• Personnel killed in action or who died in service.
• Personnel disabled due to causes attributable to government service.
• Ex-personnel holding gallantry awards.

Under the linked components, wards of State/UT Police and RPF/RPSF personnel who lost their lives in the line of duty are also eligible.

A fresh applicant must additionally:

• Have secured a minimum of 60% in the qualifying examination (Class 12, diploma or graduation, as relevant).
• Be enrolled in a recognised full-time professional degree course: engineering, medicine, dental, veterinary, law, management and the like; at an institution approved by UGC, AICTE or the relevant council.

A beneficiary cannot apply / is not eligible if:

• They scored below 60% in the qualifying examination.
• They are enrolled in a distance-learning or correspondence course, or a course not recognised by the appropriate regulator.
• The parent's or spouse's service does not fall in an eligible category.
• They are already drawing another scholarship for the same course where double benefit is barred.

For renewal, a beneficiary must keep at least 50% marks in the previous academic year and continue in the same course.

What documents are required?

How to apply for the scholarship

1. Go to the National Scholarship Portal at scholarships.gov.in during the annual application window and register as a new applicant if needed.
2. Log in and select the Prime Minister's Scholarship Scheme for wards and widows of Central Police Force personnel.
3. Fill in your personal, academic and course details, and the service particulars of the parent or spouse.
4. Upload the documents, qualifying marksheet, proof of service, Aadhaar, bank passbook and admission proof.
5. Submit the application and note the application ID. The institution and the Welfare and Rehabilitation Board verify the claim before the scholarship is sanctioned.

Applications are accepted only through the National Scholarship Portal, and there is no fee to apply.

How much benefit does the scheme provide?

• Rs 36,000 per year for each girl student or eligible widow (Rs 3,000 a month).
• Rs 30,000 per year for each boy student (Rs 2,500 a month).

The benefit runs for the full duration of the professional course, up to five years, subject to annual renewal. Each year, around 2,000 fresh scholarships are sanctioned for wards of CAPF and Assam Rifles personnel, split equally between boys and girls, with additional scholarships reserved under the State/UT Police and RPF/RPSF components.

Renewal and continuation

This is not a one-time grant. Once selected, a beneficiary must renew the scholarship every academic year on the National Scholarship Portal, submitting proof of promotion to the next year of the course and of at least 50% marks in the previous year. Missing the renewal window, dropping below the marks threshold, or switching to an ineligible course ends the scholarship.

Help and grievance redressal

The scheme is administered by the Welfare and Rehabilitation Board (WARB), Ministry of Home Affairs. The WARB Central Office can be reached at 011-23063111 and by email at secywarb-mha@nic.in. Application-specific queries are also handled through the National Scholarship Portal helpdesk. No agent is required, and no fee is charged to apply for or renew the scholarship.

How to check your application status

Once an application has been submitted on the National Scholarship Portal, there is no separate tracking page specific to this scheme; status is checked through the same portal login used to apply.

1. Go to scholarships.gov.in and log in with the registered application ID and password used at the time of applying.
2. Open the "Application Status" or "Track Application" section on the student dashboard. This shows the current stage: submitted, verified by the institution, forwarded to the Welfare and Rehabilitation Board, sanctioned, or disbursed.
3. Check whether the institution has verified the application. A large share of delays happen at this stage, because the college or university has to confirm the student's enrolment and marks before the file moves forward; an applicant should follow up with their institution's nodal scholarship officer if the status stays "pending at institution" for several weeks.
4. Once the Welfare and Rehabilitation Board processes the file, the portal shows a sanction status, and disbursement is reflected as a DBT (Direct Benefit Transfer) credit to the Aadhaar-seeded bank account linked at registration.
5. If the portal status does not update for an extended period, or shows a discrepancy, the applicant can raise a grievance directly on the National Scholarship Portal's grievance module, or contact the Welfare and Rehabilitation Board (WARB), Ministry of Home Affairs, at 011-23063111 or secywarb-mha@nic.in, quoting the application ID.
6. For a renewal application in a later year, the same portal login is used; the status of each year's renewal is tracked separately under that year's academic session, so a beneficiary should check the correct year's tab rather than assuming an old application ID carries over.

There is no SMS-based or offline status-check channel for this scheme; the National Scholarship Portal login is the only official way to track a submitted or renewed application.

Common reasons for rejection

Marks below the 60% cutoff. Fresh applications are rejected outright if the qualifying examination marksheet shows less than 60%. There is no relaxation or rounding-off; a student just under the threshold should look at other scholarships with a lower marks bar rather than reapply here for the same year.

Course not recognised as a professional degree. The scheme funds professional courses such as engineering, medicine, dental, veterinary, law and management at institutions approved by UGC, AICTE or the relevant statutory council. Applications for general arts, science or commerce degrees, or for courses at unrecognised or unapproved institutions, are rejected. Before applying, a student should confirm the course and institution appear on the relevant regulator's approved list.

Distance-learning or correspondence enrolment. Because the scheme is meant for full-time professional study, applications for distance-education or correspondence courses are turned down. Only regular, full-time enrolment qualifies.

Service proof does not establish an eligible category. The parent's or spouse's service certificate must clearly show service in a Central Armed Police Force, Assam Rifles, State/UT Police, or RPF/RPSF, and the relevant status (serving, retired, killed in action, disabled, or gallantry award holder). A generic employment certificate, or one that does not specify the force and rank, is a common cause of rejection; applicants should get the certificate issued by the parent's/spouse's own unit or department in the format the department normally uses for such claims, naming the force and category explicitly.

Aadhaar or bank details mismatch. Since the scholarship is paid by Direct Benefit Transfer, an Aadhaar number that does not match the bank account's seeding, or a bank account not linked to Aadhaar at all, causes the disbursement to fail even after sanction. Applicants should verify Aadhaar-bank seeding at their bank branch before submitting the application.

Missed renewal or marks dropped below 50% at renewal. The scholarship is not automatically continued. If a beneficiary misses the annual renewal window on the portal, or falls below 50% marks in the previous academic year, the renewal application is rejected and the scholarship lapses for that year. Applicants should track the portal's renewal opening dates each year and apply promptly.

Duplicate benefit for the same course. An application is rejected if the same student is already receiving another central or state scholarship for the identical course where the two are not permitted to be combined. Where such overlap exists, the applicant should choose one scheme or check with the National Scholarship Portal helpdesk on which combination, if any, is allowed.

Incomplete or unclear document uploads. Blurred, partial, or mismatched-name documents (for instance, a marksheet name that does not match the Aadhaar name exactly) are a frequent, avoidable cause of rejection at the institution-verification stage. Applicants should ensure the name, date of birth, and other identifying details are consistent across the marksheet, Aadhaar and bank passbook before uploading.