Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MP Kanimozhi N.V.N. Somu on Tuesday questioned the non-allocation of funds in the recent Union budget for a scheme that helped reduce the school dropout rate among girls from Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe communities.
During a discussion in the Rajya Sabha on the budget allocation for the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, she said the National Scheme for Incentive to Girl Child for Secondary Education (NSIGSE), which was in existence since 2008-09, had been discontinued without any explanation.
Under the scheme, a fixed deposit of ₹3,000 was made in the name of each beneficiary on her enrolment in Class 9. She will be able to withdraw the sum with interest after turning 18, provided she completed Class 10 and was unmarried. The MP asked whether the Union government carried out a proper assessment before discontinuing the scheme, particularly because the dropout rate among children from marginalised communities had increased during the pandemic.
