State restarts scholarship exams for Class 4, 7 students

According to the new schedule, the final round of existing Class 5 and Class 8 scholarship examinations will be conducted tentatively in February 2026 and around April or May 2026 for Class 4, 7

The Maharashtra government on Saturday approved a proposal to advance the eligibility levels for pre-upper primary (Class 4) and pre-secondary (Class 7) scholarship examinations from academic year 2025-26.

As part of the restructuring, the government has also revised the scholarship amounts. (HT)

According to the new schedule, the final round of existing Class 5 and Class 8 scholarship examinations will be conducted tentatively in February 2026 and around April or May 2026 for Class 4, 7.

As part of the restructuring, the government has also revised the scholarship amounts. Students qualifying for Class 4 level will receive ₹5,000 per year and ₹7,500 for Class 7 level. Both scholarships will be provided for three years. The state has sanctioned 16,693 scholarships each for Class 4, 5 and 16,588 scholarships each for Class 7, 8.

The “Pre-Upper Primary Scholarship Examination” will be called the Primary Scholarship Examination (Class 4 level), and the “Pre-Secondary Scholarship Examination” will be known as the Upper Primary Scholarship Examination (Class 7 level).

The decision to revert the exam levels was taken after officials observed a steep decline in student participation since 2015, when the eligibility was shifted upward to Class 5 and 8 in line with the Right to Education Act.

The scholarship examination scheme has been in operation since 1954-55 with the objective of identifying meritorious, underprivileged, and intelligent students from rural and urban areas and supporting their further education through financial aid. To be eligible, the candidate must be a resident of Maharashtra and enrolled in Class 4 or Class 7 in a recognized school across all educational boards.

For Class 4 level, the maximum age as of June 1 will be 10 years for general category students and 14 years for disabled students. The maximum age will be 13 years for general category students and 17 years for disabled students for Class 7.

The examination fee for non-backward category students has been fixed at ₹200, which includes a registration fee of ₹50 and an examination fee of ₹150. For Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, Vimukta Jati and Nomadic Tribes (VJNT), and differently-abled students, the fee will be ₹125. Each participating school will also have to pay an annual registration fee of ₹200 to the Maharashtra State Examination Council.