CBSE issues guidelines for residential schools interested in SHRESHTA 2023

NEW DELHI: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has issued guidelines for residential private schools intending to avail the Scheme for Residential Education for Students in High Schools in Targeted Areas (SHRESHTA) 2023-24 for meritorious Scheduled Caste (SC) students. The guidelines include applicability, eligibility, selection process, among other directions.

CBSE said that only private residential schools up to Class 12 can apply for the scheme. In order to be eligible, schools must be running for five years or more and must have a 75 percent pass percentage in both Classes 10 and 12 for the last three years. The applying school must have proper infrastructure for admitting at least 10 students in Class 9 and 11 together. The status of school must be residential as per the OASIS data, it said.

Students will be given entry in Class 9 and Class 11. The board informed that every year 3,000 students are selected for the scheme through the National Entrance Test for SHRESHTA (NETS) which is conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA). Students are allocated schools through web counselling based on their merit and choices.

Asking schools to read about the scheme carefully, CBSE said, “For details such as maximum admissible scholarship, number of seats, the obligations on the part of selected schools, the scheme document must be carefully perused to know the specifics and also to ascertain the school’s suitability and eligibility for the scheme.”

Schools that get selected for the scheme have been asked to show the year-wise and grade-wise numbers of students admitted in on their website. The board informed that the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment selects the schools and the board shares the list of private residential schools with it on the basis of data.

CBSE also asked schools to ensure that they meet the criteria while giving their consent for the scheme. The interested schools can give their consent directly to the department. Once the consent is approved, the schools cannot refuse the allotted students. For all issues on selection, funds, allocation, the schools can contact the DoSJE directly.