Union minority affairs minister Najma Heptullah has shot off a letter to communications and IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, informing him that the ministry was unable to implement the scholarships scheme for minority students in the Northeast because of lack of internet connectivity. She said only a strong internet coverage can rescue the minority scheme.
Lest the connection between internet and scholarships surprises, sources said the scheme is totally dependent on web connectivity for success. With a dedicated portal to connect with target beneficiaries, the lack of internet in the Northeast is not allowing the students to apply for scholarships in time.
Also given the physical distance with the region, the ministry uses video-conferencing to join the state administrations to apprise itself of progress and grievances. The monitoring thus suffers owing to poor internet.
The irony is that the region not just has a high concentration of minorities but also a level of backwardness that would automatically qualify the students for financial incentives.
After an in-house review, Heptullah decided to urge the communications minister to step in with a focus on the neglected region.
The performance in pre-matric, post-matric and merit-cum-means scholarships for 2014, posted on the ministry website, bears out Heptullah's concern, with Assam being the only exception in the region. Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya have no demand; Manipur took 6.66 cr, 1.45 cr and 3.59 cr; Mizoram 28.03 cr; Nagaland 13.75 cr, 1.68 cr; Sikkim 1.11 cr; Tripura 2.27 cr, 0.02 cr, 0.21 cr.
If Heptullah's plea has an impact, it would be the push from the unlikeliest corner like the minority affairs ministry that would play a role in boosting internet connection in the Northeast, and its better integration with the national mainstream.
Reached for comment, Heptullah lashed out at the UPA regime for the plight of the region. "The previous government talked a lot about the N-E region but never thought about internet connectivity. How do you reach those states? There is no rail or air connection. There has to be wireless connection. Had the UPA done it, I would not have had to write to the IT minister," she told TOI.