The government has disbursed Rs 7,981.47 crore to more than 75 lakh scheduled caste (SC) beneficiaries in the fiscal year 2025-26. These funds were allocated for schemes managed by the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment, focusing on the educational empowerment of marginalized students from Scheduled Castes. Notable increases were observed in various scholarship programs, with significant rises in expenditure seen across key schemes.
Expenditure under the Pre Matric Scholarship Scheme for SCs and Others increased by 21%, while the Post Matric Scholarship Scheme for SCs saw an 11.23% rise. Additionally, there was a 13.5% increase in expenditure under the Central Sector Scholarship of Top Class Education for SC students. The Scheme for Residential Education for Students in High Schools in Targeted Areas (SHRESHTA) for SCs also experienced a 16% increase in expenditure compared to the previous fiscal year.
Moreover, the National Safai Karamcharis Finance and Development Corporation (NSKFDC) disbursed Rs 223.47 crore of concessional finance to 29,448 beneficiaries in FY2025-26, with nearly 97% of them being women. The average loan size increased by 16.67% to Rs 77,000, reflecting a positive trend. The Corporation, with an authorized share capital of Rs 785 crore and paid-up capital of Rs 720 crore, has successfully disbursed cumulative loans amounting to Rs 3340.67 crore, benefiting over 6.08 lakh individuals.
NSKFDC, operational since October 1997, focuses on the socio-economic upliftment of Safai Karamcharis, waste pickers, manual scavengers, and their dependents through concessional finance and support interventions. The Department of Social Justice and Empowerment also oversees the implementation of various Acts and welfare schemes aimed at the upliftment of Other Backward Classes (OBCs), senior citizens, victims of alcoholism and substance abuse, transgender persons, persons engaged in begging, Denotified and Nomadic Tribes (DNTs), and Economically Weaker Sections (EWS).
