Bringing relief to families hit by the diamond industry slowdown, the Gujarat government has disbursed Rs 8.28 crore towards school fees of 6,368 children of unemployed diamond cutters in Surat.
According to official data, over 75,000 workers in Surat — and 1.04 lakh across Gujarat — have been jobless for the past year. Under a special package, the state offers up to Rs 13,500 per child per year for school fees. On Thursday, Surat District Collector Dr Sourabh Pardhi approved 6,094 applications, with funds directly transferred to 249 schools.
A review meeting was held with District Industries Commissioner Jigar Dave, Surat Diamond Association (SDA) president Jagdish Khunt, and others. Dave said 75,000 applications were received, of which 30,000 have been sent to the SDA for verification. Around 25,000 have already been cleared, and the government has sanctioned Rs 15 crore for the scheme.
To handle the workload, the SDA hired 20 college students for tele-calling and cross-verification with factory owners. “We verify about 6,000 applications daily and expect to finish by next Friday,” said Khunt.
The Opposition raised the issue in the Assembly on September 9, with Congress MLAs demanding clarity on beneficiaries. Minister Balvantsinh Rajput informed that besides Surat, applications from Botad, Amreli, and Ahmedabad are also under process.
The relief package, announced in May, aims to support diamond polishers who have been unemployed since March 2024. Workers’ unions, however, have urged the government to extend the scheme beyond one year and raise the fee limit to Rs 20,000–25,000.