Why is it in the news?

• The SHREYAS scheme has been making a substantial impact to empower economically disadvantaged Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs).

 About the Scheme

• The scheme comprises four central sector sub-schemes: “Top Class Education for SCs,” “Free Coaching Scheme for SCs and OBCs,” “National Overseas Scheme for SCs,” and “National Fellowship for SCs.”
• It has been implemented over a period of nine years, from 2014-15 to 2022-23.

Top Class Education for SCs

• The “Top Class Education for SCs” scheme aims to promote quality education among SC students by providing full financial support for pursuing studies beyond the 12th class.
• Eligibility criteria for this scheme also include a ceiling of the total family income of 8 lakhs per annum.

Free Coaching Scheme for SCs and OBCs

• The “Free Coaching Scheme for SCs and OBCs” provides coaching to economically disadvantaged SCs and OBCs to help them appear in competitive and entrance exams, secure jobs in the public/private sectors, and gain admission to reputed technical and professional higher education institutions.
• Eligibility criteria for this scheme include a ceiling of the total family income of 8 lakhs per annum, with 70% of slots reserved for SC students and 30% for OBC students. Additionally, 30% of slots in each category are reserved for females.

National Overseas Scheme for SCs

• The “National Overseas Scheme for SCs” provides financial assistance to SC students for pursuing master’s and Ph.D. level courses abroad, covering tuition fees, maintenance, contingency allowance, visa fees, and airfare.
• Eligibility criteria for this scheme include a total family income of less than Rs. 8 lakhs per annum, more than 60% marks in the qualifying examination, age below 35 years, and admission to top 500 QS ranking foreign institutes/universities.
• Students selected for this scheme come from SCs, De-notified, Nomadic, and Semi-Nomadic Tribes, landless agricultural laborers, and traditional artisan categories.

National Fellowship for SC Students

• The “National Fellowship for SC Students” provides fellowships to SC students pursuing higher education leading to M.Phil/Ph.D. degrees in Sciences, Humanities, and Social Sciences in Indian universities/institutions/colleges recognized by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
• The scheme offers 2000 new slots per year for students who have qualified the National Eligibility Test- Junior Research Fellowship (NET-JRF) of UGC and Junior Research Fellows for Science stream qualifying UGC-CSIR Joint Test.