Bikash resents scholarship delay, blames officials

By Our Correspondent

Agartala, October 8, 2024

Tribal Welfare Minister Bikash Debbarma on Tuesday expressed his sharp disappointment over the role of some officials and alleged that despite his approval the scholarship for the students hadn’t been released.

According to Debbarma, some officials in the department were trying to earn a bad name for the government disregarding the intentions of the Chief Minister. He was speaking to the media persons, a day after students of the indigenous communities staged protests against the delay in release of scholarships.

“I will convene a meeting of the Director and Secretary today. I signed the file last month. Around 34,000 entitled students received the scholarship in their accounts. For three to four thousand students the scholarship is withheld. It is a fact that if they don’t get the money in time, they will be unable to pay their semester exams. A wrong message is going all over. Due to a section of officials, the whole state government is facing embarrassment,” the Minister explained.

He also appealed to the students to refrain from submitting fake income certificates. “Some students submit fake income certificates through the NSP portal. If the certificates are later found to be fake, the government would have to take action against the student and his parents, In that case, students should remain careful,” he added.