Tamil Nadu has released Rs 30.24 crore in education scholarships for 84 students admitted to foreign universities under the Ambedkar Overseas Higher Education Scholarship scheme, according to a clarification issued by the state Social Justice Department on Thursday.
The department said 366 students had been approved for assistance under the scheme during the current year. Of these, 165 students have already joined the foreign universities where they secured admission, while the remaining 201 are expected to join universities between January and March next year.
Among the 165 students who have joined their universities, 140 have submitted their admission details and university fee claims through the department’s online portal. The department said the scholarship amount released so far covers education fees and related expenses for 84 of these applicants.
The department added that 25 students who have joined foreign universities had not yet submitted their applications through the online system. For the other applicants who have submitted their details, the department said university bank-account information had been sought to process further payments.
The clarification stated that there had been no delay in releasing scholarships to students. It provided the details in response to concerns raised by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin about the implementation of the overseas education assistance scheme. The department’s statement did not provide a university-wise breakdown of the 84 disbursements or specify the countries and courses involved.
The scheme’s implementation depends on multiple administrative steps: selection and approval of students, confirmation of admission, submission of fee claims through the online portal and receipt of the relevant university banking details. The figures released by the department show that approval under the scheme and actual disbursement occur at different stages, as students join universities and complete the documentation process.
The department also said the Adi Dravidar Housing and Development Corporation, known as TAHDCO, had sanctioned special education loans worth Rs 9.50 crore to 116 students selected during the current year. These loans are separate from the scholarship disbursements described in the department’s clarification.
The next stages identified by the department are the joining of the remaining 201 approved students between January and March, submission of pending online applications and collection of university bank-account details for processing payments. The department did not state when the next set of scholarship releases would be completed.
