Eighty-nine students will pursue higher education under the government student loan scheme for 2014. Of the total, 46 are girls and 43 boys. According to the education ministry over 200 students had applied for the loan scheme.
Eighty students will pursue their further studies in colleges in the country and the rest in India. The ministry says that a multi-sectoral student loan committee was formed to scrutinise the applicants.
The broad parametre applied for selecting the candidates, according to the press release, was the level of parental support, number of siblings, educational background, academic performance, family residence and poverty level. “The loan scheme is mainly targeted for those who come from very economically disadvantaged family backgrounds,” reads the press release.
Each student will be entitled to full tuition fees, which will be released directly to the colleges and Nu. 1500 per month as living allowance.
It was one of the pledges made by the government during their election campaigns.