The Margadeepam Scholarship is a pre-matric scholarship from the Government of Kerala. It is for minority students studying in classes 1 to 8 in government and aided schools in the state. The Directorate of Minority Welfare, a government department for notified minority communities, runs it. The Directorate of Minority Welfare is a government department functioning for the overall welfare and advancement of notified minority communities.
Students get Rs. 1,500 each for the academic year. The 2026-27 round has closed. The application submission deadline was extended to 31 October, 5:00 PM. Watch the portal for the next notification, because the official sources do not give dates for later years.
What you get
The scholarship amount is 1,500 per student for the academic year. The money goes to the student’s bank account by DBT, credited through DBT (Direct Benefit Transfer) from the Treasury. Selected students must have an account in a nationalized or scheduled commercial bank in their own name.
Girls get a reserved share. 30% of the scholarships are reserved for girl students, and if those quotas are not filled, boy students will be considered.
Who can apply
- Community: Muslims, Christians (all sects), Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, and Parsis.
- Class and school: Students currently studying in Class I to VIII in Government schools or Government aided schools in Kerala.
- Residence: The applicant must be a permanent resident of Kerala.
- Family income: The annual income of the parent or guardian from all sources should not exceed 2.5 lakh.
- Siblings: The scholarship is limited to a maximum of two children from the same family.
Who cannot apply: Students receiving any other scholarship are not eligible to apply. If more than two children from one family apply, the principal shall reject the third application. The official sources do not publish an age limit. Eligibility depends on the class.
How to apply
- Visit the official scholarship portal at www.margadeepam.kerala.gov.in and download the Application Form from the portal. The 2026-27 application form is printed in Malayalam, so the Head of the Institution shall provide assistance to the applicants if you need help.
- Fill out the application form with accurate and complete information.
- Submit the filled form to the Head of the Institution.
- The school clerk enters the applicant’s details in the Clerk Login and submits them to the Head of the Institution.
- The Head of the Institution verifies the details and forwards the application to the Minority Welfare Department through the portal.
You can check your status on the portal’s Track Details page. For help, call 0471 2300524 or 0471 2300523, or write to the Directorate at 4th Floor, Vikas Bhavan, Thiruvananthapuram, 695033.
Documents you need
Documents must be in PDF format, with a maximum size of 200 KB. You need:
- A family income certificate issued by the Village Officer.
- A community certificate or minority certificate issued by the Village Officer.
- A copy of the bank passbook, for a student or joint account with a parent or guardian.
- A disability certificate, if the child has a disability of 40% or more.
- A death certificate, if a parent or both parents have died.
- The academic grade sheet for 2025-26.
The mandatory documents need not be uploaded with the application. The Head of the Institution keeps them safely at the school.
How students are selected
Students in Class 1 do not need academic marks, and eligibility is decided on income. Students from Class 2 to Class 8 are selected by index points based on grades in 2025-26. The 2026-27 selection table gives up to 30 points in total:
- Family income: up to 10 points, using the formula (2,50,000 minus actual income) divided by 25,000.
- Previous year’s academics: up to 12 points, with grade A giving 12, B giving 10, C giving 8 and D giving 6.
- Loss of parents: 4 points if both parents have died, 2 points if one has died.
- Disability: 4 points for a disability of 40% or more.
If there are not enough applicants in a class, students from another class with more applicants will be considered.
Renewal
The scholarship is not renewed automatically. A student who has received the scholarship once can reapply for the next academic year to avail the benefit again. Keep in mind that if a student is found to have received the scholarship by making a false statement, the scholarship will be immediately canceled and the amount granted will be recovered.
Important dates
- Applications invited: 1 September 2026, for 2026-27.
- Last date to submit to the school: 30 September 2026, as the notification sets.
- Last date for the school to send verified applications to the Directorate: 15 October 2026, as the notification sets.
- Extended deadline: 31 October 2026, 5:00 PM, according to the portal’s latest notice. An earlier portal notice had given 15 October 2026, 5:00 PM.
The 2026-27 window has closed. Dates for 2027-28 are not in the official sources yet.
Official sources
Checked against these official sources on 5 November 2026.
