Gov’t slashes scholarships for construction workers' children, concerns raised over education access

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: In a recent announcement, the Karnataka government revealed plans to significantly reduce scholarships for children of construction workers due to a labour department budget shortage.

This decision has sparked dissatisfaction among students and experts, who fear it could lead to decreased school enrollment and deny quality education to the children of construction workers on the edge of poverty.

The labour department received over 13 lakh scholarship applications, identifying 7 lakh students as beneficiaries for the 2022-23 academic year. The department decided to cut scholarship amounts from primary school to higher education institutions by a substantial 80-85 per cent.

This reduction impacts students pursuing engineering, medical, and other postgraduate courses. For example, if an MBBS student's annual scholarship, previously Rs 60,000, is now reduced to a mere Rs 11,000, while postgraduate students see their funding drop from Rs 35,000 to Rs 10,000.

Students, both first-year and final-year, expressed shock at the sudden change. They highlighted the rising cost of education, emphasising that the diminishing scholarship, which once eased their financial burden, now exacerbates their challenges.

Deeksha Guddappa, a first-year computer science engineering student from Shimoga studying at SKSJTI, Bengaluru, shared her predicament, stating that her father's 25 years of labour enabled her secondary education with minimal scholarship and higher education now appears increasingly unattainable.

Chaitra UK, a student from Mandya studying in Mysore, emphasised the perennial delays in scholarship disbursement, forcing parents to resort to bank loans for fee payments.

She underscored the potential financial difficulties students might face without adequate support. Vasudev Sharma, the executive director of the Child Rights Trust (CRT), asserted that even a small amount can make a significant difference for students.

He expressed concern that without government support, students might find themselves devoid of assistance.