If you are from a fishing family in Kerala and have a son or daughter in school, college or a professional course, there is money waiting that many families never claim. Kerala’s E-Grantz 3.0 portal is open for the 2026-27 academic year, and applications close on 30 November 2026. That gives you about four weeks from today — but do not leave it to the last week, because your institution still has to verify the application on the portal, and verification is where most applications stall.
This guide is written specifically for fishing families. There is one important distinction to understand first, because getting it wrong sends people to the wrong counter.
The One Distinction That Matters
E-Grantz 3.0 is not a fisheries-only scheme. It is the Government of Kerala’s centralised scholarship portal, run by the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes Development Departments, for students from reserved and socially backward communities. A student from a fishing family qualifies through it when the student belongs to one of the eligible categories — SC, ST, OBC, OEC, EBC or SBC — and meets the income and attendance rules below.
Separately, the Kerala Department of Fisheries itself lists educational assistance for fishermen’s children among its welfare forms, including an application form for educational assistance above matriculation and a list of students eligible for educational grants and stipends. If your child does not fall in an E-Grantz category, or if you are unsure which route fits, ask your local fisheries officer which form applies to your family — do not assume one application covers both routes.
For most fishing families, the E-Grantz portal is the route with a live, dated deadline right now: 30 November 2026. That is what this post covers step by step.
Kerala E-Grantz 2026-27 at a Glance
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Portal | E-Grantz 3.0 — egrantz.kerala.gov.in |
| Academic year | 2026-27 |
| Last date to apply | 30 November 2026 |
| Application fee | Nil — registration, application and renewal are all free |
| Who runs it | SC, ST and OBC Development Departments, Government of Kerala |
| How money reaches you | Direct Benefit Transfer to the student’s Aadhaar-seeded individual bank account |
| Key condition | Institutional verification by your college or school nodal officer, plus 75% monthly attendance |
| Helpline | Toll-free 1800 425 2312; department emails are listed on the portal |
Who Can Apply: Eligibility in Plain Language
- Domicile: You must be a permanent resident of Kerala.
- Enrolment: You must be enrolled in a recognised institution — school, college, polytechnic or university — with admission secured under the merit or reservation quota. Private and self-financing colleges recognised by the appropriate authority in Kerala are eligible on the same conditions.
- Course level: Pre-matric (Classes 1 to 10), higher secondary (Classes 11 and 12, including VHSE), diploma and polytechnic, undergraduate degree, postgraduate degree, professional courses such as engineering, medicine and law, and doctoral programmes are all covered.
- Attendance: You must maintain at least 75% attendance each month. This is checked, and it is a common reason for payments stopping.
- Social category: SC, ST, Other Eligible Communities (OEC), OBC, Economically Backward Communities (EBC) and Socially Backward Communities (SBC).
Income Limits: Who Has a Cap and Who Does Not
| Category | Annual family income limit |
|---|---|
| SC and OEC | No restriction |
| OBC | Up to ₹1,00,000 per annum |
| EBC and SBC | Up to ₹1,00,000 per annum |
If your family income is above the limit for your category, do not submit a false income certificate to get around it — a rejected or cancelled application costs you the whole year, and the certificate is cross-checked against your other records.
What You Actually Get: Monthly Stipend Rates
Stipend amounts depend on your category, your course type, and how far you live from your institution. The rates below are the figures in the 2026-27 guides checked on 1 November 2026. One honest warning: older guides list lower SC and OEC figures (₹500 within 8 km and ₹600 beyond it), while the current guides list ₹630 and ₹750. Rates are revised from time to time, so treat the portal’s figure for your own application as final and do not budget against a guide’s number alone.
| Category and situation | Monthly stipend |
|---|---|
| SC / OEC — college within 8 km of residence | ₹630 |
| SC / OEC — college beyond 8 km of residence | ₹750 |
| SC / OEC — professional course, living independently for want of hostel facility | ₹1,500 |
| OBC — higher secondary (Classes 11 and 12), day scholar | ₹160 |
| OBC — postgraduate or professional course, day scholar | ₹200 |
| OBC — postgraduate or professional course, hosteller | ₹250 |
| OBC — polytechnic course, day scholar | ₹100 |
| OBC — polytechnic course, hosteller | ₹150 |
These are stipends, not full fee waivers. They are meant to support study costs alongside your course — they will not by themselves cover a professional course fee. If a professional course is your plan, read the fee structure of the institution first and treat E-Grantz as one part of the funding, not the whole of it.
How to Apply: Step by Step
- Go to the official portal only: egrantz.kerala.gov.in. Do not pay any agent or website that charges a fee for this application — the portal is free, and Akshaya e-centres in Kerala can help you apply at no service charge.
- Complete One-Time Registration (OTR): Click One-Time Registration on the homepage, enter your Aadhaar number and name, validate your Aadhaar, tick the consent box, and complete registration. Your basic details are captured once and reused across schemes.
- Log in and complete your profile: Fill in every section of your profile — personal details, institution, course, category and bank details — and save it. An incomplete profile cannot move to the application stage.
- Apply for the scholarship: Click “Apply for Scholarships”. The portal lists the schemes you are eligible for. Select the right one and submit the application.
- Upload your documents: Aadhaar card, caste or community certificate, income certificate where applicable, age proof, and the marksheet of your most recently completed examination. For a fishing family, keep your fisherman certificate ready too — the Fisheries Department’s own educational assistance route asks for it, and your institution may ask to see it.
- Get institutional verification done: This is the step people miss. Your institution’s nodal officer must verify your enrolment, course details, attendance record and documents on the portal. Without that verification, your application cannot move to departmental approval or payment. Go to the nodal officer in person and confirm the verification is complete — do not assume submission alone was enough.
- Track your application: Use “Track Application” on the portal with your Aadhaar number or application ID. It shows whether you are at institutional verification, departmental approval or bank payment stage.
Why Applications Fail — and How to Avoid It
- No institutional verification: The single biggest failure point. Submit early enough that your nodal officer has time to verify before 30 November.
- Joint bank account: Only individual accounts are accepted for Direct Benefit Transfer. A joint account will block payment — and your account must be seeded with Aadhaar.
- Attendance below 75%: Monthly attendance is a condition, not a formality. A shortfall can stop the stipend.
- Wrong category or income certificate: Apply under the category and income limit that actually applies to you, with current certificates.
- Waiting until the last day: Portal load, document problems and verification delays all pile up at the deadline. Aim to submit at least a week early.
- Paying an agent: There is no fee at any stage. Anyone charging for an E-Grantz application is not part of the process.
For Fishing Families Specifically: What Else Exists
Beyond E-Grantz, Kerala’s Fisheries Department describes educational assistance schemes for fishermen’s children as part of its welfare work, alongside free education at its Regional Fisheries Technical Schools and support for higher studies for children of fishermen families. The department’s own forms page lists the educational assistance application for fishermen’s children above matriculation. If your child is aiming for a fisheries degree itself, KUFOS — the Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies — runs its own fellowships for meritorious postgraduate and doctoral students, which we covered separately. Check both routes: the general E-Grantz portal for the 30 November deadline, and your fisheries officer for the department’s own assistance.
And if you missed the National Scholarship Portal’s 2026-27 student window, which closed on 31 October 2026, E-Grantz is the live Kerala route still open to you. Do not confuse the two deadlines — the NSP window is over for this cycle, the E-Grantz window runs to 30 November.
Renewal: If Your Course Runs Longer Than a Year
If your course spans more than one year, you must renew your E-Grantz application at the beginning of each subsequent academic year. The renewal window and deadline for each session are published on the portal’s notice board. Log in to your registered profile, select the renewal option for your scheme, and submit the updated application before the deadline — a missed renewal means a gap in payment, not an automatic continuation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is E-Grantz only for fishermen’s children?
No. E-Grantz 3.0 covers SC, ST, OBC, OEC, EBC and SBC students across Kerala. Fishing families benefit through it when the student meets the category rules, and separately through the Fisheries Department’s own educational assistance forms.
Is there any application fee?
No. One-time registration, scholarship application, profile updates and renewal are all free.
I study in a private or self-financing college. Can I apply?
Yes, if the college is recognised by the appropriate authority in Kerala and you meet the category, income and attendance conditions, with admission under the merit or reservation quota.
What if I transfer to another college?
Update your new institution’s details on your profile and get fresh verification from the new institution’s nodal officer so payment continues without interruption.
When will the money arrive?
No disbursement date for 2026-27 has been announced in the guides checked for this post. Payment follows institutional verification and departmental approval, credited by Direct Benefit Transfer — track your status on the portal rather than relying on a promised date.
Who do I contact for help?
The toll-free number is 1800 425 2312, and the SC, ST and OBC departments list their helpdesk emails on the portal. Your institution’s nodal officer is your first stop for verification problems.
Fact-Check Note (1 November 2026)
Every date and figure in this post was checked on 1 November 2026 against the sources below. The 30 November 2026 deadline and the open status of the 2026-27 window come from the E-Grantz 3.0 guide updated 28 October 2026, which states applications are currently open. The portal address egrantz.kerala.gov.in, the income limits, the 75% attendance rule, the free application, the Direct Benefit Transfer mechanism and the stipend tables are confirmed across that guide and the Fisheries E-Grantz guides. The older SC/OEC rates (₹500/₹600) found in earlier guides are flagged above rather than hidden, because guides disagree on that one point. The Kerala Fisheries Department’s own educational assistance form for fishermen’s children is confirmed on the department’s official forms page. If any figure on the portal differs from this post when you apply, the portal governs — and please tell us so we can correct this post.
Official Links
- E-Grantz 3.0 official portal: https://egrantz.kerala.gov.in
- Kerala Fisheries Department — forms, including educational assistance for fishermen’s children: https://fisheries.kerala.gov.in/en/forms
- Kerala Fisheries Department — welfare and development schemes: https://fisheries.kerala.gov.in/index.php/en/node/618
Related Fisheries India Posts
- KUFOS Fellowships: ₹13,000/Month for Fisheries PhDs! — KUFOS funds its own meritorious postgraduate and doctoral students.
- Fisheries Students: ₹50,000 Aid Ends Oct 31 — the National Scholarship Portal window that closed on 31 October 2026, and why E-Grantz is now the live route.
- Fully Funded Wageningen MSc? African Students, Dec 1 — a fully funded European fisheries master’s route with a 1 December 2026 deadline.
- DAAD Funds Fisheries Masters in Malawi — Nov 12 — a funded aquaculture and fisheries science master’s in Malawi, closing 12 November 2026.
Images in this post are illustrations created for Fisheries India. The facts above are drawn from the official portal and the guides cited in the fact-check note.