At least 45 lakh students from six minority communities in West Bengal have received scholarships from the state government amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a top official here said. Minority students, who belong to families that have less than Rs 2 lakh as family income, are eligible for the scholarship programme, provided they have secured at least 60 per cent mark in the previous exam, P B Salim, the chairman of West Bengal Minorities Development and Finance Corporation, told Express.

The state hopes that every eligible student -- elementary education to PhD level -- gets benefited from the programme, he said. "The government had begun doling out scholarships on August 1. We aim to reach the 50-lakh figure by December 15," he said. Last year, 42 lakh minority students had received scholarships, Salim said. Once selected under the programme, the scholarship amount, ranging from Rs 1,500 to Rs 60,000, is directly transferred to the bank account of the beneficiaries in a month's time, the official added.