Post Matric Scholarship to VJNT Students, Maharashtra 2026‑27

The Post Matric Scholarship to VJNT Students is a Maharashtra state scheme for students from the Vimukta Jati and Nomadic Tribes (VJNT) category. The OBC, SEBC, VJNT & SBC Welfare Department runs it. Only VJNT category students get the tuition fee, exam fee and maintenance benefits under this scheme.

Eligible students get a monthly maintenance allowance plus reimbursement of fees. The allowance ranges from Rs. 90 to Rs. 425 a month, depending on the course group and whether the student lives in a hostel. New forms and renewals for 2026-27 sit only on the MahaDBT 2.0 site. The older site still takes fresh 2025-26 forms.

What you get

The official scheme page sets a monthly rate for each course group, with separate figures for hostel residents and day scholars. The page gives these rates without naming a year, and it does not list which courses fall in each group.

• Students who study at government, aided or non-aided colleges receive the full tuition fee, exam fee and allowance, whether the course is professional or not.
• A student admitted to a government hostel gets one-third of the hosteller rate.
• B.Ed and D.Ed students get the full benefit. In aided or unaided colleges, fees follow the government rate for the course.
• Joining on or before the 20th brings the allowance for that month. A later joining starts it the next month.
• Payments run from the day of admission until the exam is completed.

Who can apply

• Your caste must fall under the VJNT category. Applicants must belong to the VJNT category.
• Maharashtra residency is required. Applicants must be residents of Maharashtra.
• Income: the parents’ or guardian’s annual income must be no more than Rs. 2.50 lakh.
• Course: the course must be approved by the government and must be at post-matric level.
• Professional courses: admission has to come through the CAP round.
• Attendance: 75% attendance is needed for the current year.
• Family limit: any number of girls from the same parents can apply, but only two boys from the same parents can.

Who cannot apply, or who loses the benefit:

• Anyone who already receives another scholarship or stipend. No scholarship is paid from the date the other award is accepted.
• Students who move from a professional course to a non-professional one. A move from non-professional to professional keeps eligibility, but the reverse ends it.
• Students who change course in the middle of an academic year. Changing course partway through a year makes you ineligible for further scholarship or freeship.

Another MahaDBT copy of this scheme page gives the income limit as Rs. 1.50 lakh, not Rs. 2.50 lakh. The live page I checked says Rs. 2.50 lakh. Confirm the limit on the portal before you apply.

How to apply

The 2026-27 round runs on MahaDBT 2.0. The steps below come from the portal’s help pages, which were written for the older site, so the new screens may look a little different.

1. Open the 2.0 site at mahadbt2.maharashtra.gov.in. Register with your Aadhaar number. The portal sends an OTP to the mobile number registered with Aadhaar. Students without Aadhaar register through a separate route.
2. Complete your profile. Personal, domicile, income, personal eligibility and caste details are entered here. Hostel details are also entered, including whether you are a hosteller or a day scholar.
3. From the list of all post-matric schemes, choose the post-matric scheme for VJNT students under the welfare department, and submit it. You can apply for schemes from the All Schemes list.
4. If you apply for more than one scheme, only one scholarship amount is paid into your bank account, based on the preference you set. Applicants can be eligible for more than one scheme on the portal, but the amount goes to one account only, following the preference set.
5. Track your form under My Applied Scheme.
6. If a desk officer sends the form back, the reason appears on your account. Make the changes in your profile and use the re-apply button under My Applied Scheme.

Documents you need

• A caste certificate from a competent authority in Maharashtra. It also serves as proof of residence.
• An income certificate or income declaration from a competent authority.
• A caste validity certificate. It is required for professional degree and professional postgraduate courses, and not for non-professional courses.
• Your HSC or SSC marksheet, or the marksheet of your last examination. HSC or SSC marksheet or last examination marksheet.
• A gap certificate, if your studies had a break. It is not needed normally, but it is required if there was a gap.
• A father’s or guardian’s death certificate, if it applies. Death certificate of father or guardian, where relevant.
• A ration card, which shows the children in the family. The ration card identifies the children in the family.
• A leaving certificate. Leaving certificate.
• A declaration from your parents or guardians on the number of children who are beneficiaries. Parents or guardians must declare how many children are beneficiaries.

How students are selected

The pages I read do not describe a merit ranking. Your institute checks the application first, and a department desk officer then approves it, which moves it to the approved list.

Renewal

• You must pass the previous year’s examination. Applicants have to pass the previous year examination.
• A year you fail earns no reimbursement for VJNT students. A failed year is not reimbursed for VJNT applicants.
• Group A: a first failure can still be renewed, but from the second failure onward the student pays their own expenses until promoted. A first-failure renewal is allowed only if the head of the institution accepts medical or other sufficient proof.
• Groups B to E: the student must be promoted to a higher class.
• Support runs until you finish one course. The page’s example says an M.A. after a B.A. and B.Ed. does not qualify, but an MBA after a B.Ed. can.

Important dates

The official pages I could read do not give a closing date for the 2026-27 round, and they do not say when the 2.0 site opened. Some other websites quote 30 September 2026 as the 2026-27 closing date. The official pages I read do not confirm that date, so check the notices on the portal before you rely on it. For help, the portal lists a helpline at 022-49150800.