Assam government continues fee waiver scheme for Higher Education in 2026–27

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The Assam Higher Education Department has issued an Executive Order continuing the Fee Waiver Scheme under the Pragyan Bharati initiative for the 2026–27 academic session, providing free admission to eligible students pursuing Higher Secondary (HS), Undergraduate (BA/BSc/BCom) and Postgraduate (MA/MSc/MCom) courses in government and provincialised higher educational institutions across the state.

Under the revised guidelines, students whose parental annual income from all sources is below Rs4 lakh will be eligible for waiver of admission fees, tuition fees and other regular institutional charges.

The scheme will cover fresh admissions to the first year of HS, undergraduate and postgraduate courses, as well as renewal admissions for eligible students in subsequent years or semesters. Students who could not submit valid income certificates during their initial admission but can produce them at the time of renewal may also be considered after due verification by the institution.

The benefit will be available in all State Universities, Government Colleges, Autonomous Colleges, Government Model Colleges, Government Model Women Colleges, Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya Adarsha Mahavidyalayas and Provincialised Colleges. However, students enrolled in private colleges, private universities, central universities, professional, vocational and self-financing courses will not be covered unless specifically notified by the government.

To qualify, applicants must be permanent residents of Assam and possess a valid domicile certificate. The government has also stipulated that neither parent should be employed in the State Government, Central Government, semi-government organisations or public sector undertakings. An exception has been made for students whose parents are employed as Grade-IV or Multi-Tasking Staff (MTS), provided all other eligibility conditions are fulfilled.

Students seeking fee waiver for subsequent years must maintain at least 70 per cent attendance, have no academic arrears or backlogs, and must have appeared in the final examination of the previous academic year. The benefit will be withdrawn if a student is found involved in ragging, vandalism, misconduct or anti-social activities affecting the academic environment.

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