MINISTRY OF TRIBAL AFFAIRS NATIONAL FELLOWSHIP FOR ST STUDENTS

Part-A: Fellowship Scheme

1. Eligibility Criteria and Course Duration Eligibility:- (i) Post-Graduation and should have taken admission in the universities covered under the category. (ii) The candidates should have a minimum of 55% marks at the final examination/grading at the PG level. (iii) There are no income criteria for eligibility in respect of this scholarship. (iv) The Maximum Age limit is 36 years, as of the first day of July of the relevant year of the award of the scholarship. a) Course: M. Phil Duration: 2 years or the date of dissertation submission, whichever is earlier. b) Course: M. Phil + Ph.D. Duration: 2+3 =5 years or date of dissertation submission, whichever is earlier. c) Course: Ph.D. Duration: 5 years or the date of dissertation submission, whichever is earlier. Income Criteria: There are no income criteria for eligibility in respect of this scholarship. Age limit: Maximum 36 years, as of the first day of July of the relevant year of the award of scholarship.
2. Universities/Institutions covered under the scheme Eligible students can take admitted for regular and full-time M. Phil/Ph.D courses in the following categories of University / Academic Institutes: - i. Universities/Institutes/Colleges included under section 2(f)/12(B) or 2(f) and 12(B) of UGC Act. ii. Deemed to be Universities included under Section 3 of the UGC Act, 1956, and eligible to receive grant-in-aid from UGC. iii. Universities/ Institutes/ Colleges receiving grants by Central/ State Government iv. Institutes of National Importance, as notified by the Ministry of Higher Education, Government of India. Part-B: Scholarship Scheme
3. Eligibility Criteria and Course Duration a) Course: Graduate Level, Post Graduate Level. b) Duration: Course duration is fixed by the Institutes. c) Eligibility: ST students who have secured admission in the notified Institutions and courses approved by the Ministry will be eligible for the scholarship under the scheme. Note:- Students availing of this scholarship are not eligible to claim the benefit of any other scholarship scheme of the Centre/ State Govt. for the same study. The duration of the course varies as per the course selected by the candidate. The scholarship, once awarded, will continue till the completion of the course, subject to satisfactory performance as certified by the Institute. d) Income Criteria: The total family income of the student to be eligible for this scholarship from all sources should not exceed ₹6,00,000 per annum. The family income shall be computed in the following manner -: In case both father and mother are working, the combined income of both from all sources shall be taken into account in computing total family income. In case any other member of the family, other than the father and mother is an earning member, his or her income shall not be included in computing total family income. In case only one parent is alive, the income of that parent shall be taken into account for considering total parental income. If other siblings or family member is an earning member, their income shall not be included in computing total family income. In the case of an orphan, supported by a guardian, income criteria shall not apply. In the case of married candidates, the spousal income will also be added to compute total family income. Note:- Definition of Income- Income means gross income including income from all sources e.g. Salary, Interest Income, Income from House property, Income from Business, Agricultural income, and Income from any other Sources, etc. It is clarified that Income for the purpose of the scholarship is not taxable Income as defined in Income Tax Act. The deductions and exemptions available in the Income Tax Act u/s 10, Section 80, or any other section will not be available in computing gross Income under the scheme. Income certificate is required to be taken once only i.e. at the time of admission to courses that are continuing for more than one year. The income certificate should be for the financial year immediately preceding the election year. In the case of salaried employees, Form-16 is accepted. In case of income from other sources, an income certificate issued by the designated authority of the respective State/UT is accepted. Universities/Institutions covered under the scheme: The Ministry of Tribal Affairs is authorized to select and notify the list of reputed premier Institutions. Students who have been admitted to these notified institutions are not eligible to apply under the Post-Matric Scholarship Scheme of this Ministry, in order to avoid duplication.

Stated amount: 31,000 A. Value of Fellowship: The applicant selected for the scholarship will be entitled to the stipend as stipulated in the following table subject to fulfillment of conditions laid down in the scheme.

1. Course: M.Phil Stream: Humanities & Social Sciences Scholarship Monthly: Rs.31000/- Contingency Annually: Rs.10,000/-
2. Course: M.Phil Stream: Science/Engineering Technology Scholarship Monthly: Rs.31000/- Contingency Annually: Rs.12,000/-
3. Course: Ph.D. Stream: Humanities & Social Sciences Scholarship Monthly: Rs.31000/- for the first two years and Rs.35000/- for the remaining 3 years Contingency Annually: Rs.20,500/-
4. Course: Ph.D. Stream: Science/Engineering Technology Scholarship Monthly: Rs.31000/- for the first two years and Rs.35000/- for the remaining 3 years Contingency Annually: Rs.25,000/-
5. HRA for all the courses (monthly): Equal to UGC rates [8% or 16% or 24% based on city]
6. Escort Allowance for Divyanjan (monthly): Rs.2000/- (at par with UGC rates) The above rates are equal to UGC rates, which may be revised as and when revised by UGC. HRA In case a student is provided hostel accommodation by the university, he/she would not be eligible to claim HRA, but will be eligible to draw only hostel fees charged by the University. The scholar will not be entitled to claim mess, electricity, water charges, etc. A certificate to this effect is to be furnished through the Registrar/Director/Principal. If the student makes his/her own arrangements of accommodation, he/she may be entitled to draw HRA as per the categorization of cities by Govt. of India. Note:- The research scholars considered eligible for the fellowship under the scheme shall not be eligible for any other fellowship/scholarship of the Union or State Government for the same study. Release of fellowship will be subject to fulfillment of various requirements stated in subsequent paras. B. Value of Scholarship: The selected student will be eligible for financial assistance as stipulated in the following table, subject to fulfillment of conditions laid down in the scheme:
7. Component: Tuition Fees and Admission fee Details: Full Admission fee, tuition fee, and other non-refundable charges in respect of Government Institutes Remarks: There will be a ceiling of Rs.2.50 lakhs per annum per student for private sector Institutes.
8. Component: Books & Stationery Details: @ Rs.5000/- per annum Remarks: per annum per student without bills/vouchers.
9. Component: Stipend Details: @ Rs.3000/-per month Remarks: NA
10. Component: Computer & Accessories Details: Rs.45000/- (One-time assistance during the course tenure) Remarks: Computer & accessories may be Desktop/Laptop etc. (Without bills/vouchers) The total number of fresh fellowships each year is 750.

No Application Fee I. Fellowship Scheme A. Registration Process for Digi locker:- (Only for those who have their Digilocker IDs) The applicant whose account is not on Digi Locker will have to first register his/her new account by clicking on the “Register on Digi Locker” button through Aadhaar. Process for Sign in : By clicking on Sign in button, where the applicant will be asked to enter Aadhaar number and click on Next button. Enter Aadhaar number along with a security Pin code (6 digit) by yourself and remember it for further use and click on submit button. Then your Digi locker account will open. Issued Document: Click “Issue document” for searching documents already linked by the issued authority. Drive (Uploaded Document): if any related document is not available in the issued document list, upload the scanned document under the section “Drive”. B. Registration Process for National Tribal Fellowship Portal:- The candidate is required to register him/herself in the portal at http://fellowship.tribal.gov.in with valid e-mail id and Mobile Number. After clicking on New Registration Student Registration tab, the registration form will open. Applicant has to register in the portal through Aadhaar. The applicant should enter Name, Date of Birth, Gender and Aadhaar Number as per his/her Aadhaar card and click validate button. Applicant will receive OTP message on registered mobile Number and email id mentioned during registration process. Now applicant is required to enter OTP and Captcha code in the given text box and click at submit button. The applicant will get confirmation message as “Your registration completed successfully” after entering & submission of correct OTP. Email id of applicant now registered and can be used as the user-id for Login in fellowship and for grievances portal. C. National Tribal Fellowship For ST Students Application Form Submission process:- The candidate is required to fill the application form on https://fellowship.tribal.gov.in/ with all necessary information and documents. Enter email Id, password and valid captcha code on https://fellowship.tribal.gov.in/Login.aspx. Application form will be displayed to fill information. Click on Apply/View NFS Application to fill -up current year’s application. Enter Personal Information, Student’s Address Details, Candidate’s Status, Post Graduation Details, Aggregate % of Marks, Current University, College Course with Stream, Department and Supervisors Details. Click on “Save & Next” button at every stage. Candidate Documents: Candidate can fetch the document from the Digilocker by clicking on “Fetch Documents from Digi Locker for linking.” Login in Digilocker through applicant’s Aadhaar is mandatory. It will redirect the applicant to the Digi locker window, then applicants have to sign in and click on “allow” button to get the documents from the Digi-locker. After clicking allow button, applicant will get the access for the section of “Issued Documents” and “Uploaded documents” on the application form. To “Retrieve issued document” applicant needs to click on Retrieve button. Declaration by the Applicant: Click on “Submit” button for final submission of the Application. Note:- No information can be updated/edited, after submission of application. After successful submission of application, the applicant needs to approach University/Institute nodal officer for verification of application. Only after verification of details entered in the application & original documents by the University/Institute, the application will be considered for next section process as valid application. Otherwise, the application will be rejected. II: Scholarship Scheme A. Online Application through Portal: Applications are invited, processed, and approved and the scholarship is disbursed through the National Scholarship Portal (https://scholarships.gov.in/) developed by (the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology). Students after taking admission for various courses in the notified Universities/Institutes will submit the application online in the above-mentioned portal for the scholarship. The date of opening and closing of the portal will be given due publicity through print and electronic media and through Institutes and States. The tentative dates of opening and closing of the portal will be advertised in the National Scholarship Portal every year (as decided by DBT Mission). Students are advised to keep watch on the portal for the opening of the application process. The applications submitted after the cut-off date and time shall not be entertained/ considered. B. Registration Process: Before filling online application form, Candidates are required to register themselves on the online portal. Students are advised to carefully go through the “Guidelines for Registration on National Scholarship Portal” before initiating the registration process. Apply Now Documents Required Part-A: Fellowship Scheme Profile Photo {size: -50 KB-100 KB} – JPEG file only. Date of Birth Proof [10th Passing certificate/10th Marksheet /School leaving Certificate/ 10th Examination Admit card, which must contain Date of Birth]- PDF file only. Post-Graduation Marksheet (All Semesters and consolidated by merging the documents) – PDF file only. Conversion factor formulae certificate issued from your university/Institutes [In case of marks are in CGPA/SGPA] -PDF file only. ST certificate [Community name should match with drop down list of domiciles States/UTs] – PDF file only. PWD Certificate [issued by Competent Authority if candidate applying as Divyangjan] – PDF file only. PVTG Certificate [Community of PVTG name should match with drop down list of domiciles States/UTs PVTG list] – PDF file only. Bonafede Certificate of admission/ joining for Ph.D. / Integrated M.Phil.+ Ph.D. - PDF file only. Note:- The above documents should be in the applicant’s Digi locker ID (https://www.digilocker.gov.in/)either in issued documents section or in Digi locker Drive. Part-B: Scholarship Scheme Following documents are required to be uploaded on the portal while filling the application online on National Scholarship Portal (NSP):-

1. Document: ST Certificate / PVTG Certificate Fresh Candidate: Yes Renewal Candidate: No Remarks: The caste Certificate is required to be signed and stamped by the competent authority.
2. Document: Income Certificate Fresh Candidate: Yes Renewal Candidate: No Remarks: Income Certificate for the FY preceding the year of selection issued by the designated authority by the respective state/UT.
3. Document: Fee Receipt Fresh Candidate: Yes Renewal Candidate: Yes Remarks: NA
4. Document: Scanned copy of the bank passbook Fresh Candidate: Yes Renewal Candidate: Yes Remarks: The student name on the passbook should match the name mentioned in the application form
5. Document: Mark sheet/Certificate of qualifying examination Fresh Candidate: Yes Renewal Candidate: Yes Remarks: For fresh Candidates: Graduate level course: 12th standard; Postgraduate level course: Graduation For renewal Candidate: Last passing [semester] mark sheet
6. Document: Bonafede Certificate issued from the Institute Fresh Candidate: Yes Renewal Candidate: Yes Remarks: NA