PRAGATI – Providing Assistance for Girls’ Advancement in Technical Education Initiative

The Pragati (Providing Assistance for Girls’ Advancement in Technical Education) is a Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) scheme. The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) implements this scheme. The Pragati scheme provides for the advancement of girls and gives financial assistance to them for pursuing Technical Education. 

Education is one of the most vital means of empowering women with the skills, knowledge and self-confidence required to participate in the development process. This scheme attempts to provide an opportunity to young women to further their education and prepare for a strong future by “Empowering Women through Technical Education”.

Benefits Provided Under Pragati Scheme

The Pragati scheme provides a total of 5,000 scholarships per annum for pursuing the following courses in any of the AICTE approved institutions:

• Degree Course-
  • First-year degree level course, or 
  • Second-year degree level course through Lateral Entry (LE).
• Diploma Course-
  • First-year diploma level course, or 
  • Second-year diploma level course through Lateral Entry (LE).

Apart from the mentioned above 5,000 scholarships, all the eligible girls who apply for degree/diploma scholarship under this scheme from the following 13 Union Territories and the North Eastern States are given a scholarship by the AICTE:

• Andaman and Nicobar Islands (UT),
• Ladakh (UT), 
• Jammu and Kashmir (UT), 
• Dadra and Nagar Haveli,
• Lakshadweep (UT), 
• Daman and Diu (UT),
• Assam, 
• Arunachal Pradesh,
• Manipur, 
• Meghalaya, 
• Nagaland, 
• Mizoram, 
• Sikkim and 
• Tripura. 

For Degree Course – From the academic year, 2020-21, Rs.50,000 per annum is provided concerning every year of study, for a maximum of 3 years for students admitted through lateral entry (LE) and for a maximum of 4 years for first-year admitted students as a lump sum amount. The lump-sum amount is given towards payment of:

• College fee, 
• Software’s purchase,
• Equipment, 
• Books, 
• Stationery,
• Computer purchase, etc.

However, no other additional grant is provided in place of the hostel and medical charges, etc. 

For Diploma Course – From the academic year, 2020-21, Rs.50,000 per annum is given for every year of study, a maximum of 2 years for students admitted through lateral entry (LE) and for a maximum of 3 years for first-year admitted students as a lump sum amount. The lump-sum amount is given towards payment of:

• College fee, 
• Software’s purchase,
• Equipment, 
• Books, 
• Stationery,
• Computer purchase, etc.

However, no other additional grant is provided in place of the hostel and medical charges, etc.

Eligibility Criteria For Pragati Scheme

The female applicants who fulfil the Pragati scheme eligibility criteria can apply for receiving the scholarship or benefits given under this scheme. The eligibility criteria are as follows:

• A maximum of two girl children in one family is eligible for the benefits under this scheme.
• The family income of the girl child from all sources should not exceed Rs. 8 lakh per annum during the current financial year. 
• The girl child/children must be admitted in the first year of their Diploma/Degree Course or the Second year of the Diploma/Degree course through LE in any of the approved AICTE institutions for the respective year. 
• Only girl children are eligible to apply for this scheme.

Pragati Scheme Application Procedure

The girls fulfilling the eligibility criteria can file an online application for receiving scholarships under the Pragati scheme on the National Scholarship Portal (NSP). The following is the process for applying for a scholarship under the Pragati scheme:

Step 1: Visit the  NSP portal and click the ‘New Registration’ option on the top of the home page. When clicked on the ‘New Registration’ option, the guidelines page will open.

Step 2: Read the complete guidelines and select/tick the undertakings provided under the ‘Undertaking by Applicants or Parent/Guardian’ head. Then click on the ‘Continue’ button. 

Step 3: Fill in the ‘Fresh Registration Application’ form that contains details such as the name of the applicant, date of birth, mobile number, email ID, bank details and select the scheme type, state of domicile, gender and scholarship category. 

Step 4: Select the Identification Detail (either Bank Account or Aadhaar Number), tick/select the verification and click the ‘Register’ button.

Step 5: The Student Application ID and Password are sent to the applicants’ mobile number.

Step 6: Visit the NPS Portal and click the ‘Login’ option on top of the home page. 

Step 7: Log in to the NPS Portal by entering the Applicant ID and Password. 

Step 8: After logging in, fill the Pragati Scholarship Scheme application form and submit it.

Note: The opening date for applying to the Pragati scheme for the scholarship will be notified on the NPS website. The application form has to be filled by the applicants before the expiry of the last date. The list of the eligible selected beneficiaries will be announced on the AICTE website.

The selected beneficiaries can renew the Pragati scheme by logging into the AICTE portal through the registered Student Applicant ID and password and filling and submitting the renewal form along with the required documents.

Documents Required For Pragati Scheme

• Copy of 10th Certificate/SSC (Secondary School Certificate).
• Copy of 12th Certificate/HSC (Higher Secondary Certificate) for scholarships for Degree level.
• Copy of the Diploma Certificate in case of LE for Degree level.
• Copy of ITI (Industrial Training Institute) Certificate in case of LE for Diploma level.
• Tuition fee receipt.
• Bank passbook.
• Caste Certificate.
• Bank Mandate Form.
• Aadhaar card.
• Study Certificate.
• Annual Family Income Certificate for the last financial year issued by not below the rank of Tahsildar.