Graduate Muslim Girls to Get Rs 51,000 from Modi Govt as 'Shaadi Shagun'
Modi government will give special gift of Rs 51,000 to Muslim girl, as she completes her graduation before marriage. The scheme is called- Shaadi Shagun, it is aimed at incentivising higher education among minority groups. All students availing Begum Hazrat Mahal scholarships funded by the Maulana Azad Foundation are eligible to apply for this top-up provision being introduced in the scheme. The minority scholarships for weaker sections in the minority communities were initiated during Atal Bihari Vajpayee regime in 2003. In its earlier avatar, meritorious girls from the minority community were given monthly stipends only till Class 12. Students whose parents earn more than Rs 2 lakh per annum cannot avail the scholarships. “We felt that families of Muslim girls and other minorities are always in dilemma about their daughter’s graduation studies and marriage. The minority groups prefer to save money for their daughter’s marriage rather than spend it on their graduation,” says Shakir Hussain Ansari, Treasurer of the Maulana Azad Education Foundation. A web portal detailing the criterion of the scheme is under construction, which is called 'Shaadi Shagun”, and will be presented at the general body meeting next month to the minister. -PTC News
