Scholarship to Son and Daughter of Differently Abled Persons

What is the Scholarship to Son and Daughter of Differently Abled Persons?

Scholarship to Son and Daughter of Differently Abled Persons is an annual education scholarship paid by the Tamil Nadu Welfare Board for Differently Abled Persons, which functions under the Department for the Welfare of Differently Abled Persons, Government of Tamil Nadu. The scheme recognises a simple economic fact: a household where the earning parent has a severe disability usually has less to spend on a child's education, and that shortage falls hardest at the exact point where the child is old enough to go on to college.

The scholarship is paid to the child, not to the parent, and the amount is graded by the level and type of course and by whether the student stays in a hostel. The Welfare Board's published rates run from Rs 2,000 a year at the school level up to Rs 8,000 a year for a professional postgraduate course with hostel stay.

The scholarship is one of several assistances the Welfare Board pays its registered members. The others include personal accident relief, funeral and natural death assistance, marriage assistance and maternity assistance, all of which run off the same Welfare Board membership.

How much does the scholarship pay?

According to the Welfare of Differently Abled Persons policy note, the annual scholarship rates are:

The scholarship is an annual payment for the year of study, credited to the student's own bank account. It is not a fee waiver, so it sits alongside any fee concession the student separately qualifies for.

Who is eligible for the scholarship?

You can apply if:

• You are the son or daughter of a differently abled person.
• Your parent is a registered member of the Tamil Nadu Welfare Board for Differently Abled Persons and holds a valid Welfare Board identity card. This is the condition the whole scheme turns on.
• Your parent's disability is certified by the notified medical authority.
• You are continuing study in one of the levels listed in the rate table, from SSLC through to professional postgraduate courses and vocational training.
• You are a resident of Tamil Nadu.

You cannot apply if:

• Your differently abled parent is not registered with the Welfare Board. Register first through the District Differently Abled Welfare Officer; the scholarship follows membership, not merely the existence of a disability certificate.
• You are not in a course covered by the rate table, for example a short-term private certificate course.
• You have discontinued study, since each year's payment requires a current bonafide certificate.
• You are yourself a differently abled student without a differently abled parent. In that case apply under the department's own student scholarship schemes, which are separate and run from Class 1 upwards.

What documents are required?

How to apply for the scholarship

1. Make sure the differently abled parent is registered with the Tamil Nadu Welfare Board for Differently Abled Persons. If not, apply for membership at the District Differently Abled Welfare Office with the disability certificate, UDID card and proof of residence.
2. Obtain a bonafide certificate from the school, college or institution stating the course, the year of study and clearly whether the student is staying in the hostel. The hostel line decides the rate, so it must not be left blank.
3. Collect the scholarship application form from the District Differently Abled Welfare Office.
4. Fill the form with the parent's Welfare Board membership details, the student's course details and the student's bank account number and IFSC code.
5. Attach the Welfare Board identity card copy, disability certificate, bonafide certificate, previous year mark sheet, Aadhaar and bank passbook copy, and submit at the district office, taking a dated acknowledgement.
6. Reapply each academic year with a fresh bonafide certificate and the latest mark sheet.

How to check your scholarship status

1. Visit or call the District Differently Abled Welfare Office with the acknowledgement, and ask for the sanction position for the academic year.
2. Confirm with the institution that the bonafide certificate it issued carries the correct course, year and hostel status, since a wrong entry lowers the rate.
3. Check the student's bank passbook for the annual credit once sanction is communicated.
4. Use the differently abled welfare helpline 1800-425-0111 for scheme-level queries.

Why applications are rejected, and how to fix them

• Parent not registered with the Welfare Board. This is the most common failure, and the cure is to obtain Welfare Board membership before the next academic year.
• Bonafide certificate silent on hostel stay, so the lower rate is applied. Ask the institution to reissue it.
• Previous year mark sheet not filed, so continuation of study is not established.
• Bank account in the parent's name rather than the student's, or a dormant account.
• Disability certificate not from the notified medical authority, or expired where it was issued for a limited period.
• Application filed after the district office closed the year's list. Ask the office at the start of the academic year, not at the end.

Other assistance from the same Welfare Board

A family already registered with the Tamil Nadu Welfare Board for Differently Abled Persons should ask the district office about the Board's other assistances in the same visit:

• Personal accident relief of up to Rs 2,00,000 for death or for loss of both hands, both legs or sight in both eyes, and Rs 50,000 for the loss of one limb or sight in one eye.
• Natural death assistance and funeral expenses.
• Marriage assistance, payable to either the husband or the wife.
• Maternity assistance for female members, including assistance on delivery, miscarriage and caesarean section.

Help and grievance redressal

• District Differently Abled Welfare Officer, for membership, the application and its status.
• Commissionerate for the Welfare of the Differently Abled, No. 5, Kamarajar Salai, Lady Wellington College Campus, Chennai 600 005.
• Helpline 1800-425-0111 and landline 044-28444948.
• scd.tn.gov.in, for scheme details and departmental notifications.

Neither Welfare Board registration nor this scholarship carries any fee. Any demand for payment should be reported to the District Differently Abled Welfare Officer.