Starting this year, the Bihar government will transfer the benefits of education schemes such as scholarships and school uniforms, as well as social welfare schemes such as old age and widow pensions, directly to the beneficiaries to reduce red tape and the possibility of mid-level officials pocketing part of the benefits. For schools, the government order brings the challenge of opening up to 25 million bank accounts for students from 69,500 primary and middle schools and 4,500 secondary and higher secondary schools.

A few predatory universities are looking for Arab students eager to study online cheaply, an Al-Fanar Media investigation has found. The “universities” try to seduce prospective students with offers of scholarships that are, in fact, just a way to pry money out of them.