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Post Matric Scholarship: PU eases fee payment for SC students amid protests
Under the new decision, Chandigarh’s Panjab University students will need to submit an undertaking at the time of admission, agreeing to deposit the fee within 10 days of receiving the amount in their accounts through direct benefit transfer (DBT)
In response to persistent protests from student groups, Panjab University (PU) on Monday decided to provide relief to students facing fee payment issues under the Post Matric Scholarship (PMS) scheme for Scheduled Caste (SC) students from Punjab.
During a meeting of the committee constituted to look into the issues of SC students of Punjab covered under the scheme, the varsity addressed the ongoing fee submission issues. Despite extending the deadline for fee submission to July 26, the protests led by the Ambedkar Students Association (ASA) and other student groups demanded a further extension.
Earlier, the students were required to pay fee in advance as per an order issued in October 2023. However, the committee has now decided to revert to the previous arrangement that existed before the circular.
Under the new decision, students will need to submit an undertaking at the time of admission, agreeing to deposit the fee within 10 days of receiving the amount in their accounts through direct benefit transfer (DBT).
For the students from the academic sessions 2020-2021 and 2021-2022, who have not yet deposited their fees, admissions will be put on hold and dues will be initiated against them. Appropriate actions will also be taken for the 2024-2025 session.
Additionally, the varsity will organise awareness camps in various hostels and departments to inform SC/ST students about PMS scheme. Banners displaying various welfare schemes for students will be placed at multiple locations across the campus.
As per officials, only around 10% of the students have settled complete PMS dues ever since the 2018-2019 session after the Punjab government had started a DBT scheme to credit the scholarship amount. Punjab government owes PU ₹21 crore for the dues under this scheme before the start of the said session, and owes additional ₹15 crore to the varsity as dues after the 2018-2019 session.
