Chief Minister’s Nanihal Scholarship Scheme: A Lifeline for Bharti Sahu

Raipur : Social security schemes like the Chief Minister’s Nanihal Scholarship Scheme, under the Labour Department of Chhattisgarh, are playing a pivotal role in breaking the generational cycle of poverty and inequality. Such initiatives reshape communities and help build a more inclusive, participatory, and sustainable society.

Bharti Sahu, a female construction worker, represents a generation of mothers who were deprived of access to education and opportunities. Determined not to let her daughters face the same fate, Bharti, despite her exhausting daily routine of construction work and household chores, recognizes the importance of giving her children a meaningful and dignified life. She and her husband applied for the Nanihal Scholarship Scheme—a program that supports the education of children of construction workers.

Parents lay the foundation for a child’s future, but economically weaker communities need inclusive social security strategies that understand and prioritize their unique needs. Education can empower these communities with knowledge and skills, fostering human development and building economic resilience. The Chhattisgarh Labour Department acknowledges the lack of access to education among marginalized groups and advocates the vision that “a labourer’s child should not remain a labourer.”

The department has designed and implemented eligibility-based programs that open up opportunities for workers like Bharti Sahu. The annual financial support offered through these educational schemes plays a crucial role in breaking the intergenerational chain of poverty and inequality.

Once her application was approved, Bharti enrolled her daughters in an English-medium school. She hopes they will receive a quality education, enabling them to secure respectable and well-paying jobs in the future. The financial aid provided through the Nanihal Scholarship Scheme has eased the burden of school fees and educational expenses. “Since both my children were born via C-section, I had to take a loan of ₹2 lakh, which I am still repaying. My husband developed a heart condition at just 32. Amidst all these challenges, any financial help for my children’s education is a huge relief,” she said.

By extending educational support to families with uncertain incomes, the Nanihal Scholarship Scheme is actively helping dismantle the cycle of generational poverty and inequality.