Public Accounts Committee questions Centre and States over audit gaps in student scholarships

The Public Accounts Committee questioned the Union government and several State governments over gaps and fraud markers in pre- and post-matric scholarships for Scheduled Caste students flagged by the Comptroller and Auditor General.

Action and Missing Officials

Led by Congress MP K.C. Venugopal, the committee is likely to move privilege notices against the Chief Secretaries of six States who failed to appear before the panel on October 15, 2026. The Chief Secretaries of Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Punjab, Odisha, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh were supposed to brief members on the audit findings but did not depute officials. The panel also questioned the Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry Secretary for not submitting action-taken reports.

Audit Findings

The 2025 CAG report highlighted 40.75 lakh beneficiaries across 14 States receiving scholarships with delays of one to 90 months, and over 3.5 lakh beneficiaries receiving nothing at all. It also found over 5,700 cases disbursed without proper income checks and more than 6,000 cases where non-SC beneficiaries received funds, alongside issues of double, short, and excess payments.

Ministry Response

The Union Ministry stated it could not file action-taken reports because State governments had not shared their reports with the Centre. Committee members questioned why fraud markers persisted despite Direct-Beneficiary Transfers, pointing to issues like the same caste certificates used by multiple people in Uttar Pradesh, common bank accounts in Odisha, and over 13 crore rupees paid in Haryana without matching Aadhaar and bank details. The panel noted that the shift to DBT caused drops in beneficiary numbers, with the 2025-26 post-matric scheme reaching only 36.07 lakh beneficiaries against a target of 76.55 lakh. The Union Ministry has assured the panel that reports will be submitted within a month.

Context

These scholarship programs are centrally sponsored schemes funded on a shared cost basis between the Centre and States. Audits by national bodies like the CAG routinely examine the implementation of public welfare programs to ensure funds reach intended recipients without leakages.