Lucknow: A scholarship distribution programme for students of the Backward Classes Welfare, Social Welfare and Minority Welfare departments was held at Lok Bhawan in Lucknow under the chairmanship of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
As part of the programme, scholarships worth ₹148 crore were transferred through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) to 4,60,559 students, including 2,23,615 students covered under the Backward Classes Welfare Department. The scholarship eligibility cut-off has been fixed at 50 per cent.
Addressing the gathering, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Backward Classes Welfare and Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Narendra Kashyap, said the initiative represented not merely a formal distribution programme but a commitment to social justice and the educational aspirations of students.
Kashyap said students previously had to wait until the end of the financial year for scholarship payments. He said the government had worked to end this practice so that beneficiaries would not have to wait for an entire year to receive financial assistance.
He expressed gratitude to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for increasing the annual scholarship budget. According to Kashyap, the budget has risen from ₹1,286 crore under previous governments to ₹3,402 crore under the present government, more than three times the earlier allocation.
He said 36.75 lakh students received scholarships in 2025-26, while the government aims to extend scholarships to more than 37 lakh OBC students in 2026-27, supporting their education and enabling them to contribute to nation-building.
Minister Danish Azad Ansari, Om Prakash Rajbhar and senior government and administrative officials were also present. Kashyap conveyed birthday greetings to Social Welfare Minister Asim Arun on behalf of the ministers and students attending the programme.
