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728 Eklavya Model Residential Schools have been approved, of which 508 are functional, with 1,56,593 students enrolled in the 2025-26 academic session.
EMRSs are established in tribal-dominated blocks having more than 50% Scheduled Tribe population and at least 20,000 tribal persons, as per Census 2011.
Each EMRS with classes up to Class XII and a full strength of 480 students has 31 sanctioned teaching posts and 21 non-teaching posts, of which 13 non-teaching posts are earmarked for outsourcing to promote local employment.
Centralised recruitment through the EMRS Staff Selection Examination has recruited 9,111 teaching and non-teaching staff, with an examination held for a further batch of 7,267.
The Ministry of Tribal Affairs runs five scholarship schemes for ST students — two Centrally Sponsored (Pre-Matric and Post Matric) and three Central Sector (Top Class, National Fellowship and National Overseas Scholarship), with income ceilings of ₹2.50 lakh, ₹6 lakh or none depending on the scheme.
Provide quality residential education to tribal students in their own environment while preserving local art and culture
Key: Established in tribal-dominated blocks with over 50% ST population and at least 20,000 tribal persons per Census 2011. As on the date of the reply, 728 have been approved and 508 are functional, with 1,56,593 students enrolled in 2025-26. Schools carry science and computer laboratories, smart classrooms, libraries, sports facilities and vocational training in apparel, automotive, AR/VR, AI, beauty and wellness, agriculture, electronics and retail. Tribal Corners have been set up to showcase tribal culture and crafts, and regional language teachers are recruited.
Support ST students in Classes IX and X
Key: A Centrally Sponsored Scheme implemented through states and UTs, open-ended with no ceiling on the number of selections, for students whose parental income does not exceed ₹2.50 lakh per annum. Disbursement is by the state government through DBT into the student's bank account.
Support ST students from Class XI up to post-graduation
Key: Also a Centrally Sponsored Scheme with the same ₹2.50 lakh annual family income ceiling and the same open-ended, DBT-based design; the Ministry releases the central share to states on the basis of their proposals.
Enable ST students to study at premier institutions
Key: A Central Sector Scheme implemented directly by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs with funds released to students or institutions through DBT; annual family income ceiling of ₹6.00 lakh. There is no state-wise allocation of funds under the Central Sector schemes.
Support ST scholars pursuing MPhil and PhD research
Key: A Central Sector Scheme with no income limit. The application portal generally opens on 1 July and closes on 30 September of the academic year, after which a merit list of 750 selected candidates is published; 3,750 fellowships have been awarded over the last five years.
Fund higher studies abroad for ST students
Key: A Central Sector Scheme with a ₹6.00 lakh income ceiling, implemented through the Ministry of External Affairs — funds reach students abroad through Indian Embassies, and the Ministry of Tribal Affairs reimburses the MEA against vouchers.
Provide concessional credit for income-generating activity, self-employment and education to Scheduled Tribe persons
Key: An apex organisation under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs set up exclusively for the economic development of Scheduled Tribes; individuals with annual family income up to ₹3 lakh, in both rural and urban areas, are eligible for concessional loans through its implementing agencies.
| Scheme | Type | Income ceiling | Implemented by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-Matric (Class IX-X) | Centrally Sponsored | ₹2.50 lakh | States and UTs, central share released by MoTA |
| Post Matric (Class XI and above) | Centrally Sponsored | ₹2.50 lakh | States and UTs, central share released by MoTA |
| National Scholarship for Higher Education (Top Class) | Central Sector | ₹6.00 lakh | Ministry of Tribal Affairs directly, via DBT |
| National Fellowship (NFST) | Central Sector | No income limit | Ministry of Tribal Affairs directly, via DBT |
| National Overseas Scholarship (NOS) | Central Sector | ₹6.00 lakh | Through the Ministry of External Affairs and Indian Embassies |
Provides overall policy direction, academic support, monitoring, capacity building, recruitment and standardisation of processes, and implements the EMRS scheme nationally
Oversee implementation, administration and day-to-day management of EMRSs within their jurisdictions
Provide local oversight and resolve local implementation issues
Apex financing body for economic development of Scheduled Tribes, extending concessional loans including education loans through implementing agencies
A Centrally Sponsored Scheme is funded jointly by the Centre and the states and implemented by state governments; the Centre releases its share against state proposals, and the state invites applications, verifies them, selects beneficiaries and disburses the money. That is why the Pre-Matric and Post Matric scholarships are open-ended with no cap on selections but depend on state administrative capacity, and why the Ministry can only issue advisories to improve their reach. A Central Sector Scheme is fully funded by the Centre and implemented directly by the central ministry, which is why the Top Class scholarship, NFST and NOS have no state-wise fund allocation at all — money moves from the Ministry to the student or institution, and in the case of the overseas scholarship through the Ministry of External Affairs and Indian Embassies. The categorisation also explains the income ceilings: the mass-coverage state-implemented schemes sit at ₹2.50 lakh, the selective central ones at ₹6.00 lakh, and the research fellowship at none, since selection there is by academic merit rather than by need.
Simple Analogy: One is a grant to the state to run a programme; the other is the ministry writing the cheque itself. Everything else — caps, ceilings, who you complain to — follows from that.
The EMRS eligibility rule — over 50% ST population and at least 20,000 tribal persons in a block — is anchored to Census 2011, which is why some districts are told no block qualifies, as with Alipurduar, Dhenkanal and Angul in this reply.
EMRS belongs to the same family of centrally supported residential schools for specific groups; comparison questions ask which ministry runs which.
All five scholarship schemes disburse through DBT, making them standard examples in answers on leakage reduction in welfare delivery.
The reply notes the EFC process is ongoing for continuing these schemes from 2026-27 to 2030-31, including a proposal to revise income ceilings — the standard route by which scheme parameters change.
GS Paper 2 > Welfare Schemes for Vulnerable Sections; Issues Relating to Development and Management of Education
General Awareness > Government Schemes and Education
General Awareness > Current Affairs
EMRS and ST scholarship schemes appear regularly in SSC general awareness and periodically in UPSC Prelims
Eklavya Model Residential School — residential schools for tribal students, 728 approved and 508 functional with 1,56,593 students in 2025-26.
National Education Society for Tribal Students, the autonomous body under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs that implements the EMRS scheme; it began functioning in 2018.
EMRS Staff Selection Examination, the centralised recruitment route through which 9,111 teaching and non-teaching staff have been appointed.
A space within each EMRS created to showcase and preserve the culture, traditions, art, crafts and heritage of tribal communities.
A scheme with no ceiling on the number of beneficiaries selected — the design of the Pre-Matric and Post Matric ST scholarships.
National Scheduled Tribes Finance and Development Corporation, which lends concessionally to ST individuals with annual family income up to ₹3 lakh.