SFI Urges PM to Restore National Overseas Scholarship for Marginalised Students

New Delhi: The Students’ Federation of India (SFI) has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging immediate restoration of the National Overseas Scholarship scheme for SC/ST students and children of agricultural workers, citing widespread exclusion and financial distress among selected candidates.

In a letter, SFI President Adarsh M Saji and General Secretary Srijan Bhattacharyya flagged that more than 60 per cent of eligible students under the scheme have been denied support for the academic year 2025–26. "Only 40 out of 106 selected candidates have received provisional award letters, while the remaining 66 are left in a state of uncertainty,” the letter stated.

Calling the stoppage discriminatory, SFI warned that students had already begun admissions abroad expecting the scholarship to follow. “Excluding selected candidates at this stage constitutes an assault on their right to education and amounts to discrimination,” the letter said.

The student body said the delay, attributed to a scarcity of funds, was “grave injustice” to scheduled caste and tribe students who rely on such fellowships to access higher education abroad. SFI demanded the government ensure scholarships are released to all 125 eligible students each year without disruption.

“The unavailability of financial assistance will deprive students from marginalised sections of their right to education,” SFI said in the letter, calling for the scheme’s immediate reinstatement.