CG News: Thousands of schoolchildren in Bastar district have received some relief. Zero-balance bank accounts will now be opened for students in grades three through eight. Special camps will soon be organized in villages and schools to support this initiative. The aim of this initiative is to provide students with scholarships and other government benefits without any deductions.

According to reports, Bastar Collector Haris S. has issued instructions to the district's lead bank manager and the postal department to immediately implement the process of opening zero-balance accounts from the upcoming 2025-26 academic year. This will ensure that banks cannot deduct any funds from students' accounts on the pretext of not maintaining a minimum balance. Until now, many students were deprived of the full benefits of the scholarship schemes due to penalties deducted from the limited scholarship amount.

CG News further reports that to implement this scheme, the Chief Post Office Superintendent has been instructed to organize special camps in schools and villages through rural post offices and branches. At these camps, bank accounts linked to Aadhaar will be opened on the spot for children, so that scholarships and other assistance can be deposited directly into their accounts through DBT.

Additionally, an important condition has been added to make the scholarship process transparent. Now, to receive scholarship benefits, it will be mandatory for the student's name to be registered on the family's ration card. The Collector has directed the District Food Controller to ensure e-KYC for all students by matching their Aadhaar card data with the Food Department's data.

The district administration has appealed to the parents to check their ration cards and if the child's name is not registered, then get it added soon and complete the e-KYC, so that the children can get the full benefit of the government schemes.