1.4 lakh TN students deniedhall ticket over unpaid fees
Ram Sundaram| TNN | Updated: Dec 17, 2017, 23:46 IST
Chennai: The son of a daily wage worker and widow, 17-year-old Babu K is the first individual from the tribal hamlet of of Malaiyarasan Kuppam near Gingee panchayat in Villupuram to clear the state Class XII board exams.
He desperately wanted to study further, but could not enroll in a college because of the family's poverty. His father died when he was a child and Babu's mother K Vijaya had to set aside a large part of her meagre earnings to allow him to complete his schooling. So the youngster decided to give up his dreams and work in a nearby cottage industry.
But a day before Babu was to start work, a local dalit and tribal rights activist organised an awareness camp at which he learned that he could pursue his dream and continue his studies with a government scholarship. He applied for the state adi dravida and tribal welfare department's post-matriculation scholarship. The Tamil Nadu government through the scheme funds an eligible candidate's entire tuition fees, accommodation and food expenses.
Babu overcame opposition from his family and villagers, applied to an engineering college in June and gained admission. But four months down the line, the government issued orders slashing the scholarships in the scheme by more than a third.
The college has now refused to give Babu a hall ticket for his coming semester examinations; his classmates had no such trouble and are preparing for the exams. Not knowing what to do, he approached his mother for help. All she could do was sell some of her belongings and gather Rs 5,000. Alternating between a sense of helplessness and frantic distraction, Babu is on the verge of dropping out.
Babu is one of more than 1.4 lakh students, in courses as varied as medicine, engineering, law and arts, who the government's withdrawal from its commitment to funding the education of dalit and tribal students has left in the lurch.
Many of these students in October filed petitions with adi dravida welfare minister V M Rajalakshmi, the department's officials and the chief minister's special grievance cell. They are yet to receive a response, said M Bharathan, of Ambedkar-Kalvi Centenary Movement, which works for students from economically weaker sections.
"The scheme was launched by late chief minister J Jayalalithaa in 2012 to reduce the dropout rates among SC and ST students," he said. "Within less than a year of her demise, the scholarship has been cut without consensus or the approval of the assembly."
An official said the adi dravida welfare department cut the funds for the scholarship scheme on an expert committee decision. "We will soon release application forms for the scholarship but the cut will remain," he said.
Ram Sundaram| TNN | Updated: Dec 17, 2017, 23:46 IST
Chennai: The son of a daily wage worker and widow, 17-year-old Babu K is the first individual from the tribal hamlet of of Malaiyarasan Kuppam near Gingee panchayat in Villupuram to clear the state Class XII board exams.
He desperately wanted to study further, but could not enroll in a college because of the family's poverty. His father died when he was a child and Babu's mother K Vijaya had to set aside a large part of her meagre earnings to allow him to complete his schooling. So the youngster decided to give up his dreams and work in a nearby cottage industry.
But a day before Babu was to start work, a local dalit and tribal rights activist organised an awareness camp at which he learned that he could pursue his dream and continue his studies with a government scholarship. He applied for the state adi dravida and tribal welfare department's post-matriculation scholarship. The Tamil Nadu government through the scheme funds an eligible candidate's entire tuition fees, accommodation and food expenses.
Babu overcame opposition from his family and villagers, applied to an engineering college in June and gained admission. But four months down the line, the government issued orders slashing the scholarships in the scheme by more than a third.
The college has now refused to give Babu a hall ticket for his coming semester examinations; his classmates had no such trouble and are preparing for the exams. Not knowing what to do, he approached his mother for help. All she could do was sell some of her belongings and gather Rs 5,000. Alternating between a sense of helplessness and frantic distraction, Babu is on the verge of dropping out.
Babu is one of more than 1.4 lakh students, in courses as varied as medicine, engineering, law and arts, who the government's withdrawal from its commitment to funding the education of dalit and tribal students has left in the lurch.
Many of these students in October filed petitions with adi dravida welfare minister V M Rajalakshmi, the department's officials and the chief minister's special grievance cell. They are yet to receive a response, said M Bharathan, of Ambedkar-Kalvi Centenary Movement, which works for students from economically weaker sections.
"The scheme was launched by late chief minister J Jayalalithaa in 2012 to reduce the dropout rates among SC and ST students," he said. "Within less than a year of her demise, the scholarship has been cut without consensus or the approval of the assembly."
An official said the adi dravida welfare department cut the funds for the scholarship scheme on an expert committee decision. "We will soon release application forms for the scholarship but the cut will remain," he said.
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