Maharashtra Govt approves to increase scholarship allowance for SC and ST students

Maharashtra Cabinet on Tuesday (October 6, 2026) approved a string of decisions including increased allowances under scholarship and hostel schemes for ST and other backward students, a new ‘Mukhyamantri Shaurya Padak’ for police personnel for acts of bravery, a hike in royalty relief for the Wadar community in stone quarrying, and a compensation policy for custodial deaths.

Under the Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Swayam Yojana, the government has approved a revision of allowances for Scheduled Tribe students. “As the number of Scheduled Tribe students enrolling in various courses has been increasing, the available admission capacity in government hostels has fallen short,” the CMO office said. 

To make it easier for Scheduled Tribe boys and girls to pursue higher education while residing outside their native villages, the department operates government hostels at the divisional, district, taluka, and rural levels. Since the academic year 2016-17, the “Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Swayam Yojana” has been implemented for Scheduled Tribe students pursuing higher education after class 12 who could not get admission into government hostels, receiving a lump-sum amount each year — for food, lodging, and maintenance allowance at fixed rates — credited directly to their bank accounts via DBT (Direct Benefit Transfer).