A very shocking case has come to the fore in Bihar, where the state government has used Rs 8,800 crore of a specially created fund for SC / ST scholarship on roads, embankments, medical Used to complete projects such as colleges and government buildings. Not only this, the lack of funds for the scholarship was also cited and due to this many students were denied scholarship for almost six years.
According to the Indian Express, the use of this money elsewhere for the Scheduled Caste Sub Plan (SCSP) fund was flagged by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) in its 2018-19 report on Bihar’s finances.
This happened despite the provisions of the Planning Commission (now NITI Aayog) which stated that the SCSP fund is for granting Centrally Sponsored Post-Matric Scholarships (PMS) to SC/ST students with an annual family income of less than Rs 2.5 lakh.
The Indian Express reported on August 10 that the Bihar government had refused PMS from 2018-19, citing a “technical issue” in the National Application Portal.
District hospitals have an average of 24 beds per 1 lakh people, Bihar has the lowest 6: NITI Aayog report
In fact, most of the Bihar SC/ST students were not given this scholarship for six years. Not only this, in 2016, the SC/ST Welfare Department of the Government of Bihar had also imposed a fee cap under it, increasing the financial burden on the students.
This scholarship, 60 percent of which is funded by the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, is for educational and professional courses from class 10th to masters level.
Utilization of Scholarship Fund as per CAG report:
The state gave Rs 2,076.99 crore to the electricity department through scholarship and also gave it a loan of Rs 460.84 crore.
It used Rs 3,081.34 crore for major road projects.
Rs 1,202.23 crore was spent on the construction of embankment and flood control projects.
Rs 1,222.94 crore was spent for medical colleges.
It used Rs 776.06 crore for the construction of agriculture department’s office and other buildings.
The CAG report for 2018-19, whose observations have been accepted by the government, said, “The committee observed from the findings of the CAG that the funds earmarked for the development of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes have been diverted for other purposes.” “
According to the Indian Express, the report further said, “The committee takes the matter seriously and recommends that the NITI Aayog should ensure that the funds earmarked for development schemes involving SCs/STs should in any case be used for other purposes.” and should not be used for projects.”
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