The National Scheme of Incentive to Girls for Secondary Education promotes the enrolment of girls aged 14-18 at the secondary stage who pass class 8 and subsequently drop out for various socio-economic reasons.
National Scheme Of Incentive To Girls For Secondary Education - Introduction
The National Scheme of Incentive to Girls for Secondary Education promotes the enrolment of girls aged 14-18 at the secondary stage, who have passed class 8 and subsequently drop out for various socio-economic reasons. The scheme aims to retain such girls up to class 12.
In 2004-05, the dropout rate of girls from classes 1 to 8 was about 50.8%. For classes 1 to 10, the dropout rate was about 64% in the same year. Hence, only 36% of the country's girls could be retained up to class 10. This is the combined result of several socio-economic factors, but a major contributor is undoubtedly the inability of parents to afford the cost of education for the girl child.
Benefits
A sum of ₹3000/- (Rupees three thousand only) would be deposited under a term deposit or fixed deposit in a public sector bank or in a post office in the name of every eligible girl child. The term or period of the deposit may be counted from the date of deposit to the date on which the girl child attains the age of 18 years. No premature withdrawal will be allowed.
Eligibility
- The applicant should be a girl child.
- The applicant should be from Scheduled Caste / Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST).
- The applicant should have passed class 8 from Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (irrespective of whether they belong to Scheduled Castes or Tribes).
- The applicant should have enrolled for class 9 in State/UT Government, government-aided, or local body schools in the academic year 2008-09 onwards.
Exclusions
- Married girls will be excluded from the scheme.
- Girl children studying in private unaided schools are proposed to be excluded because the majority of such schools charge high fees, and therefore parents of these girls may not require the financial assistance offered under this scheme.
- Students enrolled in schools run by the Central Government are also excluded from the scheme, as these children are either already fully provided for, or are children of Central Government employees who can afford their education without further support.
Application Process
- STEP 1: Visit the Registration page of the National Scholarships Portal.
- STEP 2: Guidelines for Registration will appear. Scroll to the bottom. Read carefully the undertaking. Accept the Terms. Click “Continue”.
- STEP 3: A Registration Form will appear. (The fields marked as * are compulsory). Fill in the details and click “Register”. Your Application ID and password will be displayed. The same will also be sent as an SMS to your registered mobile number.
- STEP 1: Visit the applicant Login page of the National Scholarships Portal. Enter your Application ID and password.
- STEP 2: Type the Captcha and click “Login”.
- STEP 3: On the next screen, provide the OTP received on your registered mobile number. You will be directed to the Password Reset screen. Create a new password and confirm.
- STEP 4: Click “Submit”. You will be directed to the “Applicant’s Dashboard”.
- STEP 5: On the left pane, click “Application Form”. The fields marked as * are compulsory. Fill in the details and upload the documents. The verification of credentials of the students (caste, educational qualifications etc.) will be done through the DIGILOCKER facility of the MeitY, Govt. of India.
- STEP 6: You can either click on “Save as Draft” to complete the application later. Else, click “Final Submit” to apply.
The student can track their payment status from the template “Know Your Payment” in the Public Financial Management System (PFMS) Portal either by indicating their Aadhaar Number, Bank Account number or NSP Application ID.