CHENNAI: The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report on 'Educational Scholarship Schemes for students belonging to SC/ST/SCC' has flagged significant gaps in the implementation of the Post-Matric Scholarship (PMS) Scheme for SC/ST students in Tamil Nadu, including poor coverage, delayed disbursement, excess payments and inadequate monitoring.
In the eight sampled districts, an average of 39 per cent of schools did not avail the PMS scheme during 2019-22. The non-coverage of potentially eligible students ranged between 20 and 29 per cent during the period. The audit noted that no special efforts or campaigns were undertaken to identify students from the poorest households for enrolment.
The audit also pointed out that the TN government is yet to begin issuing 'Freeship Cards' to eligible students. Adequate measures were not taken by the Department or educational institutions to encourage students who had dropped out to re-join.
Financial management also came under scrutiny. Contrary to existing guidelines, the Directorate of Adi Dravidar Welfare deposited Rs 55.50 crore by splitting the amount into 35 fixed deposits.
Scrutiny of applications in sampled institutions revealed that income and community certificates were missing in 27 per cent of applications. Further, Rs 41.95 crore was sanctioned and disbursed to 20,509 students whose parental income exceeded the prescribed threshold.
Comparison of scholarship payments between 2021-22 and 2022-23 showed that 30,424 students received excess scholarships amounting to Rs 17.90 crore. Among them, 160 students received the 40 per cent State share twice, resulting in an excess payment of Rs 13.50 lakh.
The audit also detected instances of students receiving dual scholarships, including PMS-SC along with the PMS scholarship for minorities, and PMS-SC along with the first generation graduate tuition fee concession.