STATUS OF EMRS AND ASHRAM SCHOOLS

2025-08-21 Information

The Union Minister of Tribal Affairs Shri. Jual Oram replying to a stared question of Shri. Balram Naik Porika laid a statement on the “Status of EMRS and Ashram Schools” in Lok Sabha today. In Union Budget of 2018-19, Government of India announced that to provide quality education to the tribal children in their own environment, Eklavya Model Residential School (EMRS) will be established in every block having more than 50% ST population and at least 20,000 tribal persons (as per census 2011). EMRS was introduced in the year 1997-98 to provide quality upper primary, secondary and senior secondary level education to Scheduled Tribes (ST) students (Class 6th to 12th) in remote areas to enable them to access the best opportunities in education and to bring them at par with the general population. In addition to the 288 EMRSs sanctioned under Article 275(1), 440 more EMRSs have been proposed across the country, bringing the total approved 728 EMRSs out of which 479 EMRSs are reported to be functional as on June 2025. National Education Society for Tribal Students (NESTS), an autonomous organization, has been established under Ministry of Tribal Affairs to manage and implement the scheme of Eklavya Model Residential School (EMRS) in co-ordination with State EMRS Societies. The status of Functional EMRSs and Enrolment therein across the country and particularly for State of Telangana as on June 2025 is as follows:

Country/State

Functional (June 2025)

Enrolment (2024-25)

India

479

138336

Telangana

9282

Infrastructure details in EMRSs: The setup of EMRS required provision of 15 acres of land free from all encumbrances to be provided by the state Government for creating a conducive environment for imparting quality education and provisioning of infrastructure towards sports & extra-curricular activities. Facilities in the schools include 16 nos. of classrooms; fully equipped science labs, computer labs, math’s lab; library; administrative facilities for Principal and Staff; toilet and drinking water facility; sports and games facilities (indoor and outdoor). Other facilities include separate Hostels for boys and girls, kitchen & dining hall and residential quarters for teaching and non-teaching staff, etc. are also provided. The criteria of 15 acre has however been relaxed on case-to-case basis.

Details of funds released for the establishment and operation of EMRS, across the country and particularly for State of Telangana during the F. Y. 2020-21 to 2025-26 (till 11/08/2025) is as under:

Rs. In Lakhs

Financial Year

India

Telangana

2020-21

92,239.38

9,517.30

2021-22

1,29,753.90

19,695.52

2022-23

1,97,055.60

12,794.53

2023-24

2,30,494.90

14,276.17

2024-25

4,61,079.70

16,804.36

2025-26 (Till 11/08/2025)

1,42,883.00

8,085.09

Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) was running a separate scheme “Establishment of Ashram Schools in Tribal Sub-Plan Areas” under which funds were provided to State Governments for the construction of Ashram schools and for upgradation of existing Ashram Schools. The intervention is subsumed in the scheme of ‘Special Central Assistance to Tribal Sub-Scheme (SCA to TSS). Further some infrastructure and upgradation of these schools has been funded under Article 275(1) of the Constitution of India. Therefore, no separate allocation was made under “Establishment of Ashram Schools in Tribal Sub-Plan Areas since 2018-19. Further, Ministry of Tribal Affairs launched the DhartiAabaJanjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DAJGUA) on 2nd October 2024 as a flagship convergence-driven initiative to saturate 63,843 tribal-majority villages with essential infrastructure and welfare services. Upgradation of Ashram Schools is one of the components of DA-JGUA. The details of funds approved and released for Ashram School under DAJGUA is given at Annexure I.

The details of funds approved for EMRSs and Ashram Schools related activities under Article 275(1) of the Constitution from 2020 to 2025 and for ‘Ashram Schools’ related activities under ‘SCA to TSS’ are as under:

(Rs. In Lakhs)

Financial Year

For EMRS related activities under Article 275(1) (Rs. in lakh)

For Ashram schools related activities under Article 275(1) (Rs. in lakh)

For Ashram schools related activities under ‘SCA to TSS’ (Rs. in lakh)

India

Telangana

India

Telangana

India

Telangana

2020-21

8093.64

11617.88

644.00

8383.11

800.00

2021-22

1044.45

7643.33

Since 2021-22, SCA to TSS has been transformed into ‘PMAAGY’.

2022-23

8647.07

12066.84

2775.00

2023-24

18949.14

274.00

17456.73

2024-25

27164.14

3960.00

15026.73

The number of tribal students in Telangana who have received pre-matric and post-matric scholarships under central schemes since 2020, including the total amount disbursed and the number of beneficiaries, year-wise, is at Annexure II.

Several initiatives have been undertaken to address infrastructural gaps in EMRSs, including expediting construction, strengthening quality monitoring mechanisms, and ensuring timely provision of essential facilities such as hostels, classrooms, and staff quarters. The detail is as under:-

· The construction cost of EMRSs was enhanced in 2021–22 to ₹37.80 crore in plain areas and ₹48 crore in hilly areas (from earlier ₹20 crore and ₹24 crore) for 440 newly sanctioned schools.

· Construction of EMRSs has been entrusted to CPWD, State Government agencies, and other PSUs to ensure professional execution and accountability.

· Coordination with State Governments to resolve land, forest clearance, and encroachment issues delaying construction.

· Provision of funds for upgradation of old EMRSs at ₹5 crore per school.

· Additional funds sanctioned under Article 275(1) for construction of staff quarters, boys’ and girls’ hostels, approach roads, water facilities, and to bridge infrastructural gaps in old EMRSs.

· Independent ThirdParty Quality Assurance (TPQA) agencies engaged to monitor construction quality.

· Structural audits conducted for completed and ongoing buildings to identify and rectify deficiencies.

· Simplification of the payment process through introduction of escrow accounts.

· NESTS carried out its first drive for direct recruitment of 10391 posts through ESSE-2023 and staff selected have been posted in various EMRSs. In addition to the direct recruitment, NESTS also has advised State Governments to depute staff on deputation. Further, directions have been issued to State EMRS Society to engage guest teachers against vacancies, and non-teaching staff on outsourcing basis/local engagement, so that academic activities are not hampered.

To address the issue of student dropouts and improve retention, NESTS, through State Governments has been implementing various essential steps, including:

Annexure I

Annexure I as referred in part (a) and (b) of the reply to Lok Sabha Starred Question No. *402 for 21.08.2025 raised by Shri Balram Naik Porika regarding “Status of EMRS and Ashram Schools”

The details of funds approved and released for Ashram School under DAJGUA as on 14.08.2025 (Rs. in Lakhs)

S. No

Name of States/UTs

Ashram Schools

Units

Approved Amount

Fund
released

Andhra Pradesh

175

155.98

11.75

Arunachal Pradesh

128

28.01

6.50

Assam

640

300.81

124.45

Bihar

1.76

–

Chhattisgarh

1160

707.37

–

Gujarat

217

163.48

63.82

Himachal Pradesh

22.47

8.99

Jharkhand

641

229.71

75.73

Kerala

13.96

0.53

Madhya Pradesh

526

447.51

31.90

Maharashtra

160

568.55

83.14

Manipur

16.75

7.13

Nagaland

198

50.28

5.78

Odisha

527

366.65

146.66

Rajasthan

558

233.85

–

Sikkim

34.35

2.90

Tamil Nadu

27.21

10.88

Telangana

623

51.56

–

Tripura

78.74

7.66

Uttar Pradesh

7.45

–

Total

5887

3506.43

587.82

Annexure II

Annexure II as referred in part (c) of the reply to Lok Sabha Starred Question No. *402 for 21.08.2025 raised by Shri Balram Naik Porika regarding “Status of EMRS and Ashram Schools”

Details of funds disbursed and beneficiaries under the Pre-Matric Scholarship Scheme for ST students of the Telangana state government.

(₹ in Lakhs)

Sl. No.

Name of the State/UT

2020-21

2021-22

2022-23

2023-24

2024-25

Beneficiaries

Fund Disbursed

Beneficiaries

Fund Disbursed

Beneficiaries

Fund Disbursed

Beneficiaries

Fund Released

Beneficiaries

Fund Disbursed

Telangana

7625

195.01

3066

76.98

225

5.72

2460*

150.00

0**

*- provisional data submitted by state/UT

**-funds not released due to unspent balance/non-submission of UC/SoE/Proposal etc

#- beneficiary data is yet to be reported by State/UT.

Details of funds disbursed and beneficiaries under the Post-Matric Scholarship Scheme for ST students of the Telangana state government.

(₹ in Lakhs)

Sl. No.

Name of the State/UT

2020-21

2021-22

2022-23

2023-24

2024-25

Beneficiaries

Fund Disbursed

Beneficiaries

Fund Disbursed

Beneficiaries

Fund Disbursed

Beneficiaries

Fund Disbursed

Beneficiaries

Fund Disbursed

Telangana

114657

12060.02

186372

29324.01

62478

7789.84

131597

15344.50

96228

15167.66

Mobilizing the tribal population to enroll in EMRSs (Eklavya Model Residential Schools) by raising awareness about the schools through participation in camps and outreach programs.
Facilitating tribes by constructing educational facilities in the most remote areas.
Introducing vocational courses to enable students to acquire skills that will support their sustainability in the job market.
Providing necessary facilities for career counselling to make students aware of prevailing opportunities. It enables students to gain insights into different career paths, understand industry requirements, and acquire the necessary skills for success in their chosen fields.
The Ministry of Tribal Affairs, through NESTS, is also focusing on skill enhancement of students to support them post-formal education. This includes making them aware of the scholarship schemes offered by the Ministry to facilitate their pursuit of higher studies.
Additionally, focusing on building new infrastructure and recruiting high-quality human resources in a timely manner to enhance educational outcomes and reduce drop-out rates. As a result, the dropout rate among tribal students in EMRSs remains minimal.
NESTS has also issued instructions to State Societies with directions to ensure students retention and zero dropouts in EMRSs.