WBMDFC Scholarship 2023-2024 | List of Scholarships, How to Apply? Eligibility, Rewards

WBMDFC Scholarship 2023-2024: To address the growing aspiration for education in the minority communities of the state and with a view to providing them more avenues for socio-economic and educational mobility by extending financial support and encouragement to the meritorious students belonging to the minority communities, the State Government has decided to set up the “Aikyashree” – West Bengal State Scholarships for Minority Students in West Bengal to be fully funded from the State budget from the financial year 2023-2024 onwards.

The primary objective of the Pre-matric Scholarship is to encourage minority communities to send their children to schools and to prevent drop-out. The Post-matric scholarship intends to encourage students to continue their pursuit of higher education. The objective of Merit-cum-Means scholarship for professional and technical courses is to support the students to pursue professional/technical studies for consequently increasing their employability potential.

You can also find more Scholarship Articles for 12th passed, 10th passed Students, and many more

The Corporation has been taking up various schemes like Economic Welfare, Scholarships, Coaching, Mass awareness and career counseling for persons belonging to notified minority Communities i.e. Muslim, Christian, Buddhist, Sikh, Jain & Parsee for their economic upliftment.

List of WBMDFC Scholarships Schemes

Types of scholarships will be provided under this scheme:

1. Pre-matric Scholarship (for meritorious students from Class-I to Class-X) – 50629
2. Post-matric Scholarship (for meritorious students from Class-XI to Ph. D) –  6109
3. Merit-cum-Means Scholarships (for pursuing technical & professional courses) – 55
4. Talent Support Stipend – 1353
5. Swami Vivekananda Merit Cum Means Scholarship for Minorities, West Bengal – 141
6. Term Loan
7. Micro Finance (Directly to SHGs)
8. Minority Women Empowerment Programme
9. Educational Loan

Talent Support stipend is a State Government-sponsored program under the MA& ME Department, Govt. Of West Bengal. WBMDFC is functioning as a Nodal Officer of the TSP Programme. WBMDFC was established in 1995 as per the West Bengal Act XVIII of 1995, i.e. The West Bengal Minorities Development and Finance Corporation Act, 1995. The function of the Corporation is to generally undertake the task of the economic welfare of the minorities.

WBMDFC has been taking up various schemes for Economic Welfare, Scholarships, vocational training, mass awareness and career counseling since its inception. This stipend is awarded to the students who are residents of West Bengal and have passed their last final examination securing less than 50% marks. He/she should have been continuing his/her studies in regular mode. The scholarship is awarded to students for pursuing studies from class XI and onwards up to Ph.D. The annual Family Income of the student should be up to ` 2 lakhs. 30 % quota of scholarship has been earmarked for girl students.

WBMDFC Scholarship Details

Particulars	Details
Name of the scheme	WBMDFC Scholarship/Aikyashree Scholarship
Launched by	Minority Affairs and Madrasah Education Department of West Bengal Minorities Development & Finance Corporation
Launched in	West Bengal State
Launched for	Students belonging to Minority Communities
Type of category	State Government scheme
Starting Date to Apply	15th August 2023
Last date to apply	31st October 2023
Official website	www.wbmdfcscholarship.in or www.wbmdfc.org
Helpline Number	1800-120-21306290875550 (Technical Helpdesk)
Helpline Email ID	[email protected]

WBMDFC Scholarship Last Date to Apply

Pre Matric Scholarship	September
Post Matric Scholarship (Fresh and Renewal)	November
Merit Cum Means (Fresh and Renewal)	November
Swami Vivekananda Merit cum means (Fresh and Renewal)	November
Talent Support Programme (Fresh and Renewal)	November

WBMDFC Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria of the list of Scholarships as follows

West Bengal Pre-Matric Scheme

The scholarship is given to Minority students for pursuing studies from class I to X.

• The applicant must be a domicile of West Bengal.
• Must be studying in a School/ Institution recognized by an educational Board/ Council/ University of the State/ Central Government.
• Must have secured not less than 50% marks or equivalent grade in the previous final examination.
• The annual family income should not exceed Rs.2 lakh.
• Students studying in institutes outside West Bengal will not be eligible for the pre-matric or post-matric scholarship.

West Bengal Post Matric Scheme

The scholarship is given to students for pursuing studies from class XI to Ph.D.

• The applicant must be a domicile of West Bengal.
• Must be studying in a School/ Institution recognized by an educational Board/ Council/ University of the State/ Central Government.
• Must have secured not less than 50% marks or equivalent grade in the previous final examination.
• The annual family income should not exceed Rs.2 lakh.
• Students studying in institutes outside West Bengal will not be eligible for the pre-matric or post-matric scholarship.

West Bengal Merit Cum Means

The scholarship is given for pursuing professional/technical courses at the graduate and postgraduate levels.

• The applicant must be a domicile of West Bengal.
• Must have got admission in a technical/professional course.
• Must have secured at least 50% marks in the last Higher Secondary/ Graduation examination.
• The annual family income of the student should not be more than Rs.2.5 lakh.
• The students who are residents of West Bengal but pursuing studies in listed institutions located outside West Bengal, as may be notified from time to time by the West Bengal Minorities’ Development and Finance Corporation, are also eligible for applying.

West Bengal Talent Support Stipend

This stipend is awarded to the students who have passed their last final examination with less than 50% marks and He/she is continuing studies in class XI onwards up to Ph.D. (except professional and technical course). This stipend is awarded out of the State Govt. fund.

• The applicant must be a citizen of India and a resident of West Bengal.
• Annual Family Income up to Rs.2.0 lakh.
• Those who passed the last examination with less than 50% marks are eligible for applying.

Swami Vivekananda Merit Cum Means Scholarship for Minorities, West Bengal

The scholarship is given to meritorious minority students (belongings to Muslim / Christian / Sikh / Buddhist / Parsee & Jain) for pursuing studies from class XI to Postgraduate in regular courses including Diploma (Polytechnic), Diploma in Pharmacy.

• Applicant must be a domicile of West Bengal and has been continuing education in the recognized institutes situated in West Bengal.
• The student should have passed out in the current year from recognized institutions affiliated/accredited to the WBBSE/WBCHSE/WBBME/any board or university situated in the state of West Bengal.
• Annual family income must be within Rs. 2.5 lakhs(Certificate to be issued by an officer, not below the rank of Joint BDO).
• Minimum marks required in the last examination Higher Secondary to Graduate level 75% and for Post Graduate level, Honours subject at Graduate level 53%, Graduation Level in case of engineering students 55% and K3-Kanyashree 45%

West Bengal Term Loan Scheme

West Bengal Minorities’ Development & Finance Corporation is providing the Term loan up to Rs. 5 lakh for persons belonging to the notified minority communities.Repayment with @ 6% interest in equal 12 or 20 quarterly installments in 3 or 5 years.

• Annual family income for the rural areas must be within Rs.98, 000/-(Rupees Ninety-eight thousand) and for urban areas, it should be within Rs 1, 20,000/- (Rupees One lakh twenty thousand) only.
• Guarantors required for the application for more than Rs. 40,000/-. For Loan from Rs. 40,001/- to Rs.50,000 – A Taxpayer or professionally qualified person (e.g. Doctor, Engineer, etc.) and For loan above Rs. 50,000/- A Govt./Semi Govt. Employee/Teacher or a good beneficiary of WBMDFC.
• Applicants having training & experience in respect of the business for which he/she is applying will get preference.
• Applicant’s age must be between 18 to 50 years.
• Must have a savings Bank Account.

West Bengal Micro Finance (Directly to SHGs)

Small loans are required to sustain the present business, income-generating economic activities, and self-help activities. For this purpose, Microfinance is provided directly to the Self Help Groups (SHGs). At least 60% of members of SHGs should be from the Minority community. Upto Rs. 1,00,000/- per member of Self Help Group (SHGs) are provided directly to SHGs. Repayment at the rate of Interest @7% p.a.in 24 months

• Self Help Group comprising of 10-20 Minority Women may apply for Loan under this scheme.
• Annual family income for the rural area must be within Rs.98, 000/-(Rupees Ninety-eight thousands) and urban Areas within Rs 1, 20,000/- (Rupees One lac twenty thousand) only.

West Bengal Minority Women Empowerment Programme

This program is launched by MA & ME Deptt. , Govt. of West Bengal for providing soft loans to Minority women for any income-generating activity or business such as small business, cottage industry, Handicrafts, etc. at the rate of 3% interest. Subsidy @50% of the loan amount, subject to a maximum of Rs.15000/-, is given to each beneficiary.

West Bengal Educational Loan

Maximum Rs. 20 lakhs for study within the country and Rs.30 lakh for study in abroad Education loan is provided for pursuing professional courses like Medical, Engineering, Management, Nursing, and Law, etc. Repayment of the loan with interest @3 % interest in installments after 6 months of completion of the course of employment, whichever is earlier.

• The student must be of the Minority community
• Annual family income not more than Rs.1, 20,000 for urban area and Rs.98, 000 for rural area
• Age group 16-32 years

WBMDFC Scholarship Application Procedure

Let us see the application procedure for all the schemes provided by West Bengal minorities and finance corporations.

Scholarship	Application
Term Loan	Application forms may be collected from the Minority office situated in the office of the District Magistrate, Sub Divisional Officer( S.D.O.) or Block Development Officer (B.D.O.).
Micro Finance (Directly to SHGs):	The application should be submitted in the prescribed format of the Corporation. For further details about the application, the concerned district Office may be contacted. The application may be submitted at any time of the year.
Minority Women Empowerment Programme	The application should be submitted in the prescribed format of the Corporation. For further details about the application concerned district Office may be contacted. The application may be submitted at any time of the year.
Educational Loan	Apply online throughout the year via www.wbmdfc.net
Merit-cum-Means Scholarship	The online application is received through www.wbmdfcscholarship.gov.in in June-August every year.
Pre-Matric Scholarship	Application to be filed online through www.wbmdfcscholarship.gov.in. Generally Online applications are received in June-August every year. Thereafter the hard copy of the filled-in application should be submitted at the respective institutes. Hard copy should accompany, income certificate by the competent Authority and self-attested Copy of Bank Pass Book of the applicant/ Jointly within the parents
Post Matric Scholarship	Application to be filed online through www.wbmdfcscholarship.gov.in. Generally online applications are received in June-August every year. Thereafter the hard copy of the filled-in applications should be submitted at the respective institute. Hard copy should accompany income certificate by the competent Authority, Copy of Bank Pass Book.
Talent Support Stipend	Application is received through portal www.wbmdfcscholarship.gov.in. Generally, the application is received in the month of June to September each year. After filling online application the Hard copy of the application along with the copy of the mark sheet of the last Examination, income certificate by the competent Authority, Copy of Bank Pass Book will have to be submitted at the concerned Institute
Swami Vivekananda Merit cum Means Scholarship	Application is received through portal www.wbmdfcscholarship.gov.in

How to Apply Online for WBMDFC Scholarship?

• Go to the official website, http://www.wbmdfcscholarship.gov.in/
• Fill the details under the Student Information section
• Fill the details under Scheme Eligibility section
• Note down your user id and check your mailbox or given a phone number for the password
• Login with provided credentials
• Change your password for security reason
• Fill the required details under the ‘Basic Information’ section.
• Fill the Academic Information section
• Mention your personal bank account  details
• Preview the completed application form before submitting it
• After submission, take out a printout of the application form.

WBMDFC Scholarship Documents Required

• Minority certificate (Issued by an appropriate authority)
• Marksheets of qualifying examinations
• Family Annual Income Certificate
• Domicile of West Bengal Certificate
• Aadhaar Card Photocopy
• Bank copy with Account No/ IFSC Code
• Recent Photograph

WBMDFC Scholarship Rewards

The amount of scholarship funds is given to minority scholars for an academic year is given here. Furthermore, the scholarship amount is directly transferred to the recipient account by direct transfer method.

Courses	Day scholars	Hosteler
I to V	INR 1100	–
VI to X	INR 5500	INR 11000
XI/XII	INR 10200	INR 11900
XI/ XII (Technical & Vocational Courses)	INR 13500	INR 15200
UG/ PG Level	INR 6600	INR 9600
M. Phill	INR 9300	INR 16500
Merit Cum Mean	INR 27500	INR 33000

WBMDFC Terms and Conditions

• The applicant has to submit a certificate regarding family income at the time of application.
• For ‘renewal’ applicants, the continuance of scholarship will be subject to securing 50% marks in the previous year examination.
• Maintenance allowance will be provided to hostellers and day scholars.
• Students should be regular in attendance, for which the yardstick will be decided by the competent authority of the school.
• If a student violates school discipline or any other terms and conditions of the scholarship, the scholarship may be suspended or canceled. The State Government can also directly cancel the award if duly satisfied with the reasons of violation of these regulations governing the scheme.
• If a student is found to have obtained a scholarship by false statement, his/her scholarship will be canceled forthwith and the amount of the scholarship paid will be recovered.
• The course/tuition fees and maintenance allowance will be credited to the student’s bank account directly under the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) mode.

For upgrading the knowledge & skill in various trades, training Programmes are conducted mainly through reputed institutions. Applications are received against advertisements by the concerned institute. Details of course of training, duration and venues are available at Website- www.wbmdfc.org from time to time.

WBMDFC also provides coaching for job-oriented examination like Banking Services Recruitment Examination, Police Constable Recruitment Examination, School Service Commission, Primary TET to the minorities candidates.

FAQ’s on WBMDFC Scholarship

Question 1.
What is WBMDFC?

Answer:
The West Bengal Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (WBMDFC) is a Statutory Corporation under the Govt. of West Bengal.

Question 2.
What is the Aikyashree Scholarship ?

Answer:
The primary goal of the Pre-matric Scholarship is to support the minority populations to send their children to schools and to limit drop-out. The Post-matric scholarship purposes to encourage students to resume their pursuance of higher education.

Question 3.
What is the TSP scholarship?

Answer:
Talent Support stipend is a State Government-sponsored program under MA & ME Department, Govt. Of West Bengal. WBMDFC is functioning as a Nodal Office of the TSP Programme.

Question 4.
Where can I get the application form?

Answer:
Application forms are available at the WBMDFC office. You can use a xerox copy of the application. The easiest of all is you can download the form from the internet. Just switch over the Downloadables Page and download the Form. It is a zipped file. Please unzip it using WINZIP software and open it with MS Word. Take a printout and use it.