7,000 OBC students’ scholarships stuck, colleges face March 25 Deadline

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar

Nearly 7,000 scholarship applications of OBC and other backward community students are stuck in colleges, putting their education at risk. With the academic year ending soon, the government has ordered colleges to clear and submit all pending applications by March 25.

Last year, around 45,000 students in the district benefited from scholarships and freeship programs. For 2024-25, colleges were instructed to process applications through the MahaDBT portal in September-October. Of the 42,885 applications logged, only 33,961 have been verified, while 7,000 remain stuck due to college delays. The OBC Welfare Department, expressing displeasure over the inaction, has issued directives to all junior and senior college principals, along with university administrators, to complete the verification process within 10 days. Assistant Director Anant Kadam cautioned that if eligible students lose their scholarships due to delays, the responsibility will fall on college principals and university officials.