New Delhi: Replying to a question raised by Jagatsinghur MP Kulamani Samal (BJD) in the Lok Sabha Monday whether possessing Aadhaar number is mandatory for availing government scholarships, Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development Upendra Singh Kushwaha said the scholarship is not denied to a student only on this ground.
Samal, through an unstarred question, said, “Is it a fact that the Centre has sent letters to states and union territories to make Aadhaar card mandatory for applying for pre-matric, post-matric and merit based scholarship schemes?”
He also stated that as per Supreme Court’s order, students could not be denied scholarships under the absence of Aadhaar card.
Kushwaha, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha, said, “In order to bring in transparency and facilitate direct and timely transfer of scholarships, Aadhaar number is being used as an identifier. However, the scholarship is not denied only on the ground that the beneficiary does not possess an Aadhaar card.”
He also added that under the absence of Aadhaar number, enrolment details of Aadhaar or other means of verification of identity like bank passbook among others could be used as identifiers.
Confusion was created among the student fraternity over some reports stating that the HRD Ministry has decided to make Aadhaar card mandatory for availing the benefits of scholarship schemes of the government.
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