Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma today released the first installment of the Umbrella Post-Matric Scholarship for Scheduled Tribe (ST) students for Academic Year 2025-26 at a programme held at Shillong College in the presence of Education Minister Lahkmen Rymbui.
For the current academic year, 96,812 ST student applications across Meghalaya have been verified, with an estimated expenditure of Rs. 198.42 crore. The Ministry of Tribal Affairs has conveyed a Central share of Rs. 84.55 crore, while the State Government sanctioned its 10% share of Rs. 9.40 crore.
An amount of Rs. 93.698 crore was released today as the first installment to all beneficiaries through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) into their bank accounts.
Explaining the delay, the Chief Minister said the Centre has introduced a new Single Nodal Agency (SNA) system, under which the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) directly transfers funds to students’ accounts after verification by the State Government. He said the new system may take four to five working days to process all accounts and urged students not to panic if they do not receive an SMS immediately.
He assured that the Education Department will continuously monitor failed transactions caused by incorrect bank details, Aadhaar seeding issues or mismatches and re-process them until every eligible student receives the scholarship.
Sangma said the scholarship is part of wider reforms in the education sector and urged young people to focus not only on qualifications and skills but also on taking responsibility and getting things done.
He also informed that the National Scholarship Portal for AY 2026-27 opened on July 3 and will remain open until November 30, 2026, for Pre and Post-Matric ST Scholarships. Officers have been directed to begin verification and sanction early to prevent delays.
The Chief Minister further assured that the Government will pursue the release of the remaining Central share and the separate CM Scholarship at the earliest.
