mhrd.gov.in Girls Hostel Scheme : Ministry of Human Resource & Development

Organisation : Ministry of Human Resource & Development
Service Name : Girls Hostel Scheme
Applicable For : Girls belonging to SC, ST, OBC, Minority communities and BPL families
Details : https://www.statusin.in/uploads/36622-Scheme.pdf
Home Page : http://mhrd.gov.in/school-education

What is MHRD Girls Hostel Scheme?

This is a new Centrally Sponsored Scheme launched in 2008-09 and is being implemented from 2009-10 to set up a 100-bedded Girls’ Hostel in each of 3479 Educationally Backward Blocks (EBBs) in the country.

Related : MHRD RMSA Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan Scheme : www.statusin.in/36616.html

The MHRD Girls Hostel Scheme has replaced the earlier NGO driven Scheme for construction and running of Girls’ Hostels for Students of Secondary and Higher Secondary Schools, under which assistance was provided to voluntary organisations for running Girls’ Hostels.

Objective of Girls Hostel Scheme

The main objective of the Girls Hostel Scheme is to retain the girl child in secondary school so that girl students are not denied the opportunity to continue their study due to distance to school, parents’ financial affordability and other connected societal factors.

Another objective of the Scheme is to make Secondary and Senior Secondary education accessible to a larger number of girl students.

Eligibility of Girls Hostel Scheme

Girls belonging to SC, ST, OBC, Minority communities and BPL families and studying in classes IX-XII in a recognised school in the EBB (run by any authority, State, District or NGO) with a valid certificate from school Head Master will be eligible to stay in the hostels.

At least 50% of the girls admitted to the hostels should belong to SC, ST, OBC, Minority communities.

Revision of Cost Norms

Initially the admissible unit cost for construction of a 100 bedded hostel, including boundary wall, boring hand-pump, electricity, furniture and equipments etc. was fixed at Rs.42.5 lakh.

During the appraisal process, most of the State Governments had expressed their reservation regarding the inadequate cost norms and requested for increasing the cost norms, preferably based on State Schedule of Rates (SOR).

The matter was carefully considered in the Ministry and it was proposed to revise the construction cost under the Girls’ Hostel Scheme to permit construction of Hostel as per State Schedule of Rates.

An EFC proposal to revise some norms of Girls’ Hostel Scheme including the cost norms for construction of hostels was sent to Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure, through IFD in March, 2011 to convene EFC meeting.

Ministry of Finance vide their O.M. dated 30-5-2011 has conveyed its concurrence to the State Schedule of Rates to be used for construction of hostels, including the hostels already sanctioned in 2009-10 and 2010-11 as per the specific detailed norms for a 100 bedded hostel.

Monitoring

** There will a continuing evaluation of the working of the scheme by State
** Government agencies through a regular and well structured system of field visits.
** Besides, an independent agency will be assigned the task of monitoring of the scheme.
** A list of mother NGOs will be drawn up for each state who will be encouraged to carry out an independent audit of the scheme.
** State Governments will also send half yearly reports indicating physical and financial progress.
** Panchayati Raj Institutions will also be involved in monitoring of the scheme.

** The beneficiary lists of students eligible for hostel facilities will be verified against the household registers maintained by the Gram Panchayats and data available with other tiers to identify any gaps, missing names in the lists.

** Any data collection in this regard will be done through panchayats.
** The financial and physical progress reports of the scheme should mandatorily be sent to the Block and Zilla Panchayats.

Publicity

** State Governments will ensure wide publicity to the scheme with publication of guidelines of the scheme in leading regional newspapers and Doordarshan at least once in a year.
** Achievements of the scheme along with location of hostels will also be published in leading regional newspapers at least once in a year.
** Central Government will also provide publicity to the scheme through central agencies like DAVP/PIB.

** One of the walls of the hostel will be painted with the exact details of what the scheme entails and what each beneficiary is entitled to under the scheme for the information to be readily accessible.

** Details of grants received and the facilities provided/ assets acquired by the hostel authorities will also be displayed at each hostel.

** Guidelines regarding selection of hostels, locations selected and details of the scheme will be put on the website of the Ministry of Human Resource Development and websites of the respective State Governments.

** State Governments will develop publicity material for the scheme in the form of brochure, which will be made available to the Panchayati Raj Institutions and disseminated through them.