Panchayat Raj Minister Dhanasri Anasuya (Seethakka) announced on Monday that 1,913 students in Telangana received scholarships under the Dr. BR Ambedkar Overseas Education Scheme after the Congress came to power. She was responding to a question raised by BRS member Gangula Kamalakar in the Assembly. Seethakka explained that 1,193 students were selected under the scheme, including 210 from the Scheduled Castes (SC), 300 from the Backward Classes (BC), 100 from the Scheduled Tribes (ST), and 500 from Minority communities.
She also stated that the new government had cleared ₹167 crore in old dues left unpaid by the previous administration. Before the Congress took over, there were ₹4,332 crore in pending scholarship dues. Additionally, she mentioned that the government had increased the cosmetic charges for students by 212%.
The Minister issued a warning to hostel caretakers, asking them to be more responsible and ensure student safety. She was responding to a case raised by MLA Kotha Prabhakar Reddy, where a student in Dubbaka attempted suicide. Reddy claimed that students were unable to express their problems due to pressure from district authorities. Seethakka urged MLAs to take the initiative in addressing such issues and report them to the government so that strict action could be taken.
Seethakka emphasized the government’s commitment to providing nutritious food to students. She said strict measures were being taken to prevent food adulteration. Additionally, female IAS officers were instructed to conduct night inspections at hostels. Addressing another concern, she revealed that the central government stopped providing funds for diet charges and scholarships in 2022, which placed the financial burden entirely on the state government.
In response, BRS leader Gangula Kamalakar criticized the current government, stating that it had done little for overseas education scholarships. He recalled that during the previous government’s tenure, 2,230 students from the BC community alone benefited from the scheme. He also mentioned that the overseas education program was launched in 2016 by then Chief Minister KCR.
Kamalakar cited a website to claim that in January, only 105 SC students were selected for the scholarship. He also highlighted that in the past, 1,050 SC students, 2,751 minority students, 2,123 BC students, and 780 Brahmin students had received support for overseas education. Additionally, he pointed out that a previous scheme providing ₹2 lakh assistance to IIT students had now been discontinued.
