One of the most telling examples of state-funded disparity is the use of the PM CARES Fund — a national emergency relief fund supported by donations from millions of Indians, regardless of caste, creed, or class.
In a post-COVID initiative, the government launched the “Free Coaching for SCs, OBCs, and PM CARES for Children Beneficiaries” scheme. It provides:
Completely free UPSC and other competitive exam coaching
A monthly stipend of ₹4,000
Upto ₹15,000 as an incentive for clearing Mains
Free accommodation and academic support
The scheme is funded directly by the PM CARES Fund — a corpus created through voluntary donations from ordinary Indians, including lakhs of General Category taxpayers.
But here’s the catch: General Category students are completely excluded from this benefit — even if they are poor, orphaned, or first-generation learners.
While the scheme includes “PM CARES for Children” beneficiaries (children who lost parents to COVID), the core 3,500 seats are divided strictly among SC (70%) and OBC (30%) candidates. General Category students who don’t qualify through caste, even if they face the same or worse economic conditions, are told: “Sorry, you don’t belong.”
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Whose CARES Is This?
When public money — donated by every citizen — is used to uplift only selected castes, it ceases to be inclusive welfare. It becomes exclusionary policy.
The uncomfortable but necessary question:
If PM CARES was funded by all Indians, why is the benefit not extended to all economically weak students — including those from the General Category?
