Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi of Odisha has announced that students from Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) backgrounds will not be required to pay admission fees at government medical and engineering colleges.

This directive was issued on Monday after it was revealed that many deserving SC and ST students encounter financial challenges during the admission process, despite their success in rigorous entrance examinations, according to an official statement.

“To address this issue, CM Majhi has instructed that SC and ST students will be exempt from any fees during the admission process and for a duration of six months post-admission,” the statement noted.

Further details on this initiative will be provided in guidelines from the state government soon.