“The NDPP-BJP coalition is not even sparing class 10 students. In a glaring example of hard-working students being victimized, the top 50 students of HSLC examination 2023 are yet to receive the Chief Minister’s Meritorious Students’ Fellowship (CMMSF) even as one year has passed by.

As per protocol the Chief Minister hands over Rs. 50,000/- each to the top 50 students during the CMMSF programme held every year. However, in a shocking turn of events, sources in the NBSE/DoSE confirmed that the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) which is the final authority to decide as and when the CMMF programme is to be held, is yet to take a decision even after a gap of one year.

Needless to state, many of the students and their parents are made to run from pillar to post, and in the process the whole point in constituting CMMSF is rendered meaningless.

The RPP can only surmise that the CMO has adjusted the funds meant for the meritorious students elsewhere. This adjustment is not a new phenomenon. The story is the same even for Post-Matric Scholarships. Every year the state Higher Education Minister promises to release thePost-Matric Scholarship on time, but every year he delays the release of funds and is not embarrassed to give concocted justifications for the delay, year after year.

The NDPP-BJP coalition has no vision nor priority for the education sector, nor for any other sectors, except for the construction sector where profits can be made by cronies. As long as the NDPP-BJP priority is on vanity projects like constructing a new rostrum at Kisama at the cost of Rs. 52 Crore, quality education – and students – will continue to suffer.”

This is a press release of the Rising People’s Party issued on July 2, 2024.