This is the rule, not the exception. The NSP-PFMS pipeline rejects roughly 8-12% of all approved scholarships every year for technical reasons — usually NPCI seeding, name mismatch, or beneficiary-type flag flips. None of these errors are visible to the student on the portal. The PIO at the relevant institute, district, state or central office must put the reason in writing within 30 days.

You may have already tried the NSP grievance module (“Lodge Complaint”) or called 0120-6619540. Both can work — when they work. But neither is legally bound to give you a reasoned answer in a fixed time. An RTI is.

• NSP grievance ticket: the operator can mark your complaint “resolved” by simply writing “kindly check status / contact your institute”. No reason needed. No appeal.
• Helpline 0120-6619540: call-centre script. Cannot pull your file. Will tell you to call your INO/DNO.
• RTI: the PIO must give you a written reply with reasons within 30 days. If they don't — or if the reply is vague — you file a First Appeal for free (also in writing, also a 30-day clock). And then a Second Appeal to the Central Information Commission, where penalties of up to ₹25,000 can be imposed on the silent PIO under §20 of the RTI Act.

In short: the NSP grievance module is a request. An RTI is a legal claim on your right to know.

The “NSP” is an umbrella portal. Your scholarship actually belongs to one of five Ministries, and the PIO who can answer is in that Ministry's chain. Check your NSP application screen — it will say one of:

• Pre-Matric / Post-Matric / Merit-cum-Means (Minorities) — Ministry of Minority Affairs (MoMA)
• Pre-Matric / Post-Matric / Top Class (SC) — Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment (MoSJE)
• Pre-Matric / Post-Matric / Top Class (OBC) — Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment (MoSJE)
• Umbrella Scheme for ST students — Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA)
• Pre-Matric / Post-Matric (PWD) — Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD)
• Central Sector Scheme of Scholarship for College & University Students (CSSS) — Ministry of Education (MoE)

The Ministry name decides which Bhawan in Delhi (or in MoMA's case, Maulana Azad Education Foundation, New Delhi) your top-level RTI goes to.

The NSP file moves through four verification gates. Before you write the RTI, find out which gate is blocking. Open https://scholarships.gov.in → “Login” → “Application Status”. You will see one of:

• Pending at INO (Institute Nodal Officer) → file RTI at the institute (Principal/Registrar)
• Pending at DNO (District Nodal Officer) → file RTI at District Welfare Officer / DSWO
• Pending at SNO (State Nodal Officer) → file RTI at State Directorate of Social Welfare (or relevant State Welfare Department)
• Approved / Released to PFMS / Released to Beneficiary but no money → file RTI at the Ministry (PFMS payment-side issue)

You can file at multiple levels at once. There is no rule against parallel RTIs.

• At the institute: the PIO is normally the Registrar (universities) or Principal (colleges/schools). Address line: “The Public Information Officer (Registrar/Principal), [Institute name], [Address].”
• At the district: the PIO is normally the District Welfare Officer (DWO) or District Social Welfare Officer (DSWO) or District Minority Welfare Officer depending on your scheme. Office is usually in the Collectorate.
• At the state: the PIO is in the Directorate of Social Welfare / Directorate of Tribal Welfare / Directorate of Minority Welfare at the state capital. (e.g., for UP — Directorate of Social Welfare, Bapu Bhawan, Lucknow.)
• At the Ministry:
  • MoSJE — The PIO, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, Shastri Bhawan, New Delhi 110001
  • MoMA — The PIO, Ministry of Minority Affairs, 11th Floor, Pt. Deendayal Antyodaya Bhawan, CGO Complex, New Delhi 110003
  • MoTA — The PIO, Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Shastri Bhawan / Lok Nayak Bhawan, New Delhi
  • DEPwD — The PIO, Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Pt. Deendayal Antyodaya Bhawan, CGO Complex, New Delhi
  • MoE — The PIO, Department of Higher Education, Shastri Bhawan, New Delhi

For central RTIs (Ministry-level), the fee is ₹10, payable through:

• Indian Postal Order (IPO) for ₹10, payable to “Pay & Accounts Officer” (or as printed in the Ministry's RTI page) — most reliable route
• Demand Draft for ₹10
• rtionline.gov.in — file the central RTI online and pay by net-banking/UPI (₹10)

For state and district RTIs, the fee varies (₹10 in most states, ₹20-50 in a few — see RTI fee calculator). Court fee stamp is accepted in some states.

If you are Below Poverty Line (BPL), the fee is waived under §7(5) — attach a copy of your BPL ration card or income certificate.

Keep questions specific, factual, and answerable in writing. Don't ask “why is my scholarship stuck?” — ask for verification dates, PFMS file numbers, rejection codes, and the dealing assistant's name.

[Your full name]
[Your address]
[Phone] · [Email]
[Date]

To,
The Public Information Officer
[Designation — e.g., Registrar / DSWO / Director Social Welfare / Under Secretary]
[Office name]
[Full postal address]

Subject: RTI application under §6(1), RTI Act 2005 — status of NSP scholarship

Sir/Madam,

I am a student-applicant on the National Scholarship Portal. I request the following information under §6(1) of the Right to Information Act, 2005, regarding my pending scholarship for Academic Year [AY 20XX-XX]:

NSP Application ID: [17-digit Application ID]
Scheme name: [e.g., Post-Matric Scholarship for SC Students]
Sponsoring Ministry: [MoSJE / MoMA / MoTA / DEPwD / MoE]
Name as per NSP record: [name]
Aadhaar last 4 digits: [XXXX]
Bank account last 4 digits: [XXXX]
IFSC: [IFSC]
Institute / AISHE code: [code]
Course: [course + year]
Date of online submission: [DD-MM-YYYY]
Current portal status as of [date]: [e.g., "Released to PFMS"]

Information sought:

1. The current status of my above-mentioned application, in writing, with the date of the latest action.
2. The dates on which **Institute Verification (INO)**, **District Verification (DNO)** and **State Verification (SNO)** were completed (or, if pending, the reason for pendency and the official responsible).
3. If the application has been forwarded to PFMS, the **PFMS file number / batch number** and the date of forwarding.
4. If PFMS has rejected or returned the credit, the **exact rejection-code and reason** as received from PFMS / NPCI / sponsor bank.
5. The name and designation of the **dealing assistant** and the **section officer** currently handling the file.
6. A copy of any internal note, deficiency memo, or query raised on this application.
7. If any document or correction is required from me, the **exact list with the exact format** required.

Fee: I enclose Indian Postal Order No. [number] dated [date] for ₹10.

I declare that I am a citizen of India.

Thank you,

[Signature]
[Name]

For Ministry-level RTIs, the easiest route is https://rtionline.gov.in — pick the Ministry, paste the body of the template above, pay ₹10 by UPI/net-banking, done. You get an instant registration number.

For institute, district, or state RTIs, use Registered Post with Acknowledgement Due (AD) — gives you a tracking number and proof of delivery. Cost: about ₹40-60.

• Take the application + IPO to the post office
• Ask for “Registered AD”
• Keep the receipt — your dated proof that you filed
• The pink AD card returns in 7-10 days, signed by the receiving office

You can also hand-deliver and ask for a stamped acknowledgement on a duplicate copy.

The 30-day clock starts the day the office receives your application (the date on the AD card or the rtionline registration timestamp).

• Day 30: Reply due. If silence, proceed to Step 8.
• Day 31 onwards: This is §7(2) deemed refusal. You can file a free First Appeal immediately.

File a First Appeal under §19(1) — also free, also a 30-day window for the FAA to decide.

The First Appellate Authority is normally one rank above the PIO:

• Institute PIO (Registrar/Principal) → FAA is the Vice-Chancellor / Director / President of Governing Council
• DSWO PIO → FAA is the District Magistrate / Collector
• State Directorate PIO → FAA is the Director / Special Secretary of the Department
• Ministry Under-Secretary PIO → FAA is the Joint Secretary / Director of that division

To,
The First Appellate Authority
[Designation]
[Office name]
[Address]

Subject: First Appeal under §19(1), RTI Act 2005

Sir/Madam,

I filed an RTI application dated [original date] (acknowledged on [AD date / rtionline number]). The 30-day reply window under §7(1) ended on [day 30]. I have received [no reply / a vague reply not addressing my questions]. I therefore file a First Appeal under §19(1) of the RTI Act 2005.

I attach: (a) copy of the original RTI, (b) postal AD acknowledgement / rtionline receipt, (c) the PIO's reply if any.

I request that the FAA direct the PIO to provide the information sought, and pass any further orders the FAA deems fit including action under §20 for the deemed refusal.

[Signature]

If the FAA also fails to respond in 45 days (the §19(6) cap), you go to the Central Information Commission (CIC) at https://cic.gov.in for central RTIs, or your State Information Commission (SIC) for state/district RTIs. The CIC's online filing portal accepts e-Second Appeals; hearings are mostly by video conference.

When a PIO replies properly to an NSP status RTI, you typically get one of these:

1. “INO/DNO/SNO pending — moved on [date], deadline [date].” — chase the named officer; show them the RTI reply.
2. “PFMS rejected on [date], code R03 — Aadhaar inactive in NPCI mapper.” — go to your bank, ask for “NPCI seeding active for DBT” — done in 1 day at most banks.
3. “PFMS rejected — name mismatch between Aadhaar and bank.” — get name corrected at bank; refile.
4. “Beneficiary type mismatch — re-apply as 'Renewal' instead of 'Fresh'.” — institute correction needed.
5. “AISHE code mismatch — institute not approved on portal.” — institute INO must update on NSP backend.
6. “Course-fee structure not approved at state level — pending with State Directorate.” — escalate RTI to State Directorate.

In every case you now have a written, dated, official answer that you can act on. That is the whole point.

• “Scholarship is a welfare matter, not RTI material.” — Wrong. Welfare schemes administered by a public authority are squarely within §2(f) & §2(j) of the RTI Act. Aditya Bandopadhyay v. CBSE (2011) 8 SCC 497 settles this.
• “Apply on the grievance module first.” — Not a legal precondition. §6(1) requires the PIO to accept any RTI accompanied by the fee.
• “Information is with PFMS, not with us.” — The PIO must transfer your application under §6(3) within 5 days to the right authority and inform you. They cannot just refuse.
• “Your application is personal information of the institute under §8(1)(j).” — Your own scholarship file is YOUR information. Subhash Chandra Agrawal and Aditya Bandopadhyay dispose of this.
• “Aadhaar details are exempt under DPDP.” — No. You are asking for your own Aadhaar-link status, not someone else's. The DPDP Act 2023 / 2025 amendment to the RTI Act protects third-party PII, not your own.

• NPCI mapper inactive — the most common single reason. Bank fixes in 1-2 days.
• Aadhaar-bank name mismatch — bank record says “ANKIT KUMAR”, Aadhaar says “ANKIT KUMAR GAUTAM”. Bank fixes in 1 day with Aadhaar copy.
• AISHE / school code not registered or wrongly tagged — institute INO must fix on NSP backend.
• Beneficiary type flip — fresh vs renewal — common in 2nd year; INO must reset.
• Course-fee structure not approved by State Welfare Board — block at SNO; State Directorate fixes.
• Defective re-KYC / OTR not completed — student must complete One-Time Registration and re-validate.
• Scholarship year cycle delay — NSP cycle is broadly Aug-Oct application → Nov-Feb verification → Mar-May disbursal. Delays beyond June for the current AY warrant an RTI.
• Bank account dormant / closed / merged after IDBI/Vijaya/PSB merger — money returned by sponsor bank; refile bank details on portal.

1. Day 0: RTI filed (post / rtionline)
2. Day 30: PIO reply due. Silence = §7(2) deemed refusal.
3. Day 31: File §19(1) First Appeal to FAA.
4. Day 76 (max): FAA decision due (§19(6): 30 days, extendable to 45).
5. Day 77 onwards: File §19(3) Second Appeal to CIC (central) or SIC (state). 90-day window.
6. Hearing: mostly by video conference. Carry IPO/AD copies + PIO reply (if any) + FAA decision.

• RTI in 12 simple steps — the citizen primer
• All helplines — NSP, MGNREGA, PMMVY, EPF, etc.
• RTI forms + fees — state by state
• RTI for MGNREGA wages not paid
• RTI for PMMVY maternity benefit not credited
• All "money & schemes" RTI guides — pension, scholarship, refund, etc.

Last reviewed: 26 April 2026.