Social Justice and Special Assistance Department, Government of Maharashtra

The Social Justice and Special Assistance Department is a department of the Government of Maharashtra responsible for the educational, economic and social development of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Vimukta Jatis, Nomadic Tribes, Special Backward Classes and Other Backward Classes within the state. The department designs and administers welfare schemes, post-matric and merit scholarships, hostels, freeship programmes and skill development support to improve access to quality education and economic opportunities for these communities. The department operates the Maharashtra Direct Benefit Transfer (MahaDBT) portal, through which eligible students apply online for state-funded scholarships and the disbursement is made directly to beneficiary bank accounts. Schemes administered include merit and need-based scholarships for school and higher education students from reserved categories, including the Rajarshi Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj Merit Scholarship, post-matric scholarships for SC students and freeship programmes for technical and professional courses. The department coordinates with the District Social Welfare Offices across Maharashtra for verification, sanctioning and grievance redressal of scholarship applications.