The Union Ministry of Minority Affairs on Thursday announced that payments pending for seven months under Maulana Azad National Fellowship (MANF) “have been released”. The fellowship for research scholars from minority communities was not disbursed since January this year.
In December 2022, the scholarship was discontinued by the ministry but existing scholars were to be granted the fellowship till their term concluded.
MANF is a five-year fellowship provided by the Centre in the form of financial assistance to six notified minority communities – Muslims, Buddhists, Christians, Jains, Parsis and Sikhs — to pursue M Phil and PhD.
Announcing the release of the pending dues, Union Minister for Minority Affairs Kiren Rijiju posted on X: “A small step that means a lot to so many. Under PM Narendra Modi’s leadership, we remain committed to ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas, Sabka Prayas’. Bhagidari se Bhagyoday is not a slogan, it’s a mission.”
Last week, Rijiju in an interview to The Indian Express had said complaints from scholars of delay in disbursement of funds are being reviewed.
Scholars who were awaiting the funds for months welcomed the government’s decision. “It is good that funds have been released. The government should make sure there are no further delays and the funds are released every month,” Aazam Ali, a research scholar, told The Indian Express.
Razia Khatoon, another recipient of MANF, said: “We really hope we don’t have to run anymore campaigns and there are no further delays. We should get our scholarship every month.”
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Khatoon also sought to know if “the revised House Rent Allowance, already granted to UGC JRF-SRF scholars, be granted to MANF scholars”. It’s been a collective demand of the MANF scholars for some time.
Congress MP from Bihar Mohammad Jawed had recently written to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman “drawing her attention” to the delay in disbursement of funds.
There are around 800 MANF scholars across India.
