Why in News?

•  Union Minority Affairs Minister launched the country’s first National Scholarship Portal mobile app that would make the government welfare schemes more accessible to needy students.
• This app will ensure a smooth, accessible and hassle-free scholarship system for students from poor and weaker sections.

National Scholarship Portal:

• The students will get all the information regarding various scholarships on this mobile app.
•  They will be able to apply for scholarships through the app.
• The students can also upload necessary documents on this app; can check the status of their application and scholarship disbursement status etc.
• All the scholarships are being given directly into the bank accounts of the needy students under Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) mode through the National Scholarship Portal.
•  It has ensured that there is no scope for duplication and leakage.

Success of such Scholarship:

•  During the last four years, about three crore students belonging to the poor and weaker sections of minorities have benefited from various scholarship programmes.
•  The beneficiaries include about 1.63 crore girls.
• The school dropout rate among Muslim girls, which was earlier more than 70 per cent, has now been reduced to about 35-40 per cent due to awareness and educational empowerment programmes.