Assam: Protests Erupt in Sivasagar Over New Criteria for Pragyan Bharati Scooter Scheme

SIVASAGAR: In a significant move, students in Sivasagar staged protests after Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced a change in the eligibility criteria for the Pragyan Bharati scooter scheme. As per the new rule, only students scoring above 80% in the Higher Secondary Examination will receive scooters.

Previously, the scheme benefited girls scoring 60% and above and boys scoring 75% and above. In 2023, over 35,000 students across Assam received scooters under the initiative.

Students protesting are urging the government to keep the previous criteria, arguing that the new rule is unfair to many deserving candidates. Similar protests have also been reported in other parts of the state. The government has not yet issued an official statement on the matter.

According to the guidelines, this year, the students who appeared in the betterment will not be eligible for the scheme. Also, the students must be residents of Assam, but those students who were admitted to institutions outside the state are also eligible, provided they have a valid Permanent Resident Certificate (PRC) for Assam.

This process is an application-based scheme/programme, and no offline applicants would be available. DHE will collect the list of students with 80% and above marks from ASSEB, and the list of beneficiaries will be uploaded to https://directorateofhighereducation.assam.gov.in/.

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