RMEWF Financial Assistance for Education of Children & Widows of Ex-Servicemen

What is the RMEWF education assistance scheme?

The RMEWF Financial Assistance for Education of Children and Widows of Ex-Servicemen is a welfare grant of the Kendriya Sainik Board (KSB) under the Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare, Ministry of Defence. It is funded from the Raksha Mantri's Ex-Servicemen Welfare Fund (RMEWF). According to the KSB portal, the scheme provides monthly financial assistance towards the education of the children of ex-servicemen of Havildar rank and below, and for the higher education of their widows.

The grant is meant to ease the cost of schooling and graduation for the families of non-commissioned ranks and their widows, who often have limited means. It is a targeted welfare scheme, not a universal scholarship, it is confined to ex-servicemen up to the rank of Havildar and their dependants.

How much does the scheme pay?

According to the KSB portal:

• The assistance is Rs 1,000 per child per month.
• It covers up to two children per ex-serviceman.
• For children, it runs up to a graduation degree; for widows, it extends to a post-graduation degree.
• The rate was last revised in October 2011.

The grant is not applicable for professional or technical courses under this particular scheme.

Who is eligible for RMEWF education assistance?

You can apply if:

• You are an ex-serviceman of the rank of Havildar or equivalent and below, or the widow or dependent child of such an ex-serviceman.
• The child is in classes 1 to 12 or an undergraduate degree course, or, for a widow, a post-graduation degree course.
• You do not already receive an education allowance or similar benefit from a state government or an employer.

You cannot apply if:

• The ex-serviceman is of a rank above Havildar, officers and higher ranks are not eligible under this grant.
• You already draw an education allowance or similar benefit from a state or employer.
• The third or later child is being claimed (except the twins provision).
• The application is more than one year old from completion of the academic year.

Number of children: a maximum of two children are covered. If the second and third children are twins, all three may be covered along with the first child.

What documents are required?

How to apply for RMEWF education assistance

1. Register and log in to the KSB web portal (ksb.gov.in) as an ex-serviceman or widow.
2. Apply online to your Zila Sainik Board (ZSB) under the education assistance scheme.
3. The Zila Sainik Welfare Officer (ZSWO) scrutinises and verifies your application and documents.
4. The verified case is forwarded through the Rajya Sainik Board to the KSB Secretariat for approval.
5. On approval, the assistance is credited to your bank account.
6. Re-apply after each academic year. The assistance is claimed year by year, and cases older than one year are not accepted.

Why applications get rejected

• Rank above Havildar — outside the scope of this grant.
• Already receiving an education allowance from a state or employer.
• Claiming a third child without the twins provision.
• Delay: applying more than one year after completing the academic year.
• Incomplete documents, such as a missing Part-II Order or marksheet.

Help and contact

• Portal: ksb.gov.in (Education of Children/Widows of ESM)
• Apply through: your nearest Zila Sainik Board and its Zila Sainik Welfare Officer
• Secretariat: Kendriya Sainik Board, West Block-IV, RK Puram, New Delhi: see the Contact Us page on ksb.gov.in for current numbers.

Because the scheme is administered locally through Zila Sainik Boards, the ZSWO is the first point of contact for eligibility questions and application help.

How to check your application status

This is a locally administered welfare grant, routed through your Zila Sainik Board (ZSB) rather than tracked on a public online dashboard with a status number. There are three practical ways to follow up once you have submitted a claim.

1. Contact your Zila Sainik Welfare Officer (ZSWO) directly. Since the ZSWO is the office that first receives, scrutinises and forwards your case, this is the fastest way to find out whether your application has moved past initial verification or is still pending on your side (for example, a missing marksheet or Part-II Order copy).
2. Ask your ZSWO whether the case has gone to the Rajya Sainik Board. Once the ZSB clears an application, it is forwarded through the state-level Rajya Sainik Board to the KSB Secretariat in New Delhi for final approval. Knowing which stage your case is at (district, state, or Secretariat) tells you roughly how much longer to expect.
3. Check your bank account for the credit. Because there is no separate acknowledgement or SMS alert built into this scheme, the clearest sign of approval is the assistance amount actually being credited to the bank account you registered. If a reasonable processing period has passed with no credit and no update from the ZSWO, follow up again with the ZSB rather than assuming the claim is still in process.
4. Escalate to the Kendriya Sainik Board Secretariat only if the ZSB cannot help. If your Zila Sainik Board is unable to give you an update or there is an unusual delay after the case has left the district level, the KSB Secretariat in New Delhi is the next point of contact; use the phone numbers and email listed on the Contact Us page of ksb.gov.in, since these office contacts change from time to time and are kept current there rather than on the education assistance page itself.

Since this is an annual claim tied to a specific academic year, keep a personal record of when you submitted each year's application. If you have not heard back within a few months and the academic year is approaching its one-year cutoff for acceptance, treat that as a signal to actively follow up with the ZSWO rather than wait, since late applications are not accepted regardless of the reason for the delay.