Agartala: August 11: A State-Level Awareness-cum-Review Meeting on welfare schemes for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) was held at Pragna Bhavan, Agartala, on Monday, chaired by Minister Santana Chakma in the presence of OBC Corporation Chairman Tapas Majumdar, Secretary Tapas Roy, Director Nirmal Adhikari, and others.
Chakma stressed the need to take welfare schemes to the grassroots, review progress, and raise awareness within the OBC community. She reaffirmed the department’s focus on social justice, empowerment, and educational upliftment.
In 2023–24, ₹325.995 lakh was disbursed to 21,733 students; for 2024–25, 24,003 applications were received. Scholarships worth ₹4,221.66 lakh benefited 20,594 students last year, while ₹554.12 lakh has supported 11,312 students this year, with ₹3,786.64 lakh needed for the remaining 9,774.
The Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Memorial Gold Medal Award (₹4.25 lakh) benefitted 17 students in 2024–25, and the Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Merit Award (₹29.955 lakh) reached 1,997 students. In health support, ₹1.28 lakh assisted 20 patients in 2024–25, and ₹0.48 lakh supported four patients in 2025–26.
A 200-seat hostel is under construction at Women’s Polytechnic, Hapania, with ₹173.25 lakh allocated. New initiatives include one-time financial aid of ₹50,000 annually for two years to 200 OBC students in professional courses; 172 students benefited last year, and 171 are provisionally selected this year.
Sports kits were distributed to 20 schools with the highest OBC scholarship recipients. Proposed schemes include the Mukhya Mantri Akanksha Scheme for Civil Services aspirants and the Mukhya Mantri Teerth Yatra Scheme for pilgrimages to Deoghar and Gorakhnath.
Chakma noted loan interest revisions, ₹277.36 crore recovered in five years, and sound financial management reflected in a ₹1.46 lakh surplus. She reaffirmed commitment to transparent governance and targeted welfare for OBC upliftment.
