Manipur Chief Minister's Scholarship Scheme for Civil Services Aspirants

Scheme Introduction: A Brief Overview

The Manipur Chief Minister's Scholarship Scheme for Civil Services Aspirants provides coaching and scholarship support to eligible Civil Services aspirants from Manipur. The scheme helps talented candidates prepare for the UPSC and MPSC examinations without having to leave the state. Quality civil services coaching is expensive and is mostly concentrated in distant metro cities. Many capable students from Manipur were giving up on a civil services career simply because they could not afford the coaching fees and the cost of living in a big city, and the scheme was designed to remove exactly that barrier.

Launched on 7 March 2019 by then Chief Minister N. Biren Singh, the CM Scholarship Scheme for Civil Services Aspirants is implemented by the Directorate of University and Higher Education, Government of Manipur, in partnership with ALS Satellite Education Private Ltd. (Alternative Learning Systems), New Delhi. Classes under the scheme were conducted online during the first two years of the programme, and physical classroom teaching began in the 2021-22 session.

Candidates are selected for the Manipur civil services scholarship through an open competitive test conducted free of cost, and are then ranked on a merit list drawn against the Manipur reservation roster. The top 200 rank holders receive a 100 per cent scholarship funded by the state government, with face-to-face classes taught by IAS mentors from Delhi. Candidates ranked 201 to 400 receive partial scholarships, funded by ALS under its Corporate Social Responsibility programme and delivered through online or VSAT classes.

To apply for the Chief Minister's Scholarship Scheme for Civil Services Aspirants, a candidate must be a graduate and a permanent resident of Manipur, and must have turned 20 years of age by the cut-off date announced for that cycle. Candidates still pursuing graduation, working professionals, and anyone who has already availed this scholarship in an earlier cycle are not eligible to apply again.

The Manipur Civil Services Scholarship Scheme was continued for the 2025-26 session, branded as Super IAS 200, with ALS IAS and the Education Department signing a memorandum of understanding in November 2025. The selection test was held on 14 December 2025 across Imphal, Churachandpur and Senapati, and the results were declared on 22 December 2025, awarding scholarships to 400 candidates across the four slabs. Classes for the batch began on 5 January 2026, targeting the UPSC Prelims 2026 attempt. The state government has again provided Rs. 2.80 crore for the scheme in the 2026-27 Manipur budget.

The scheme received a fresh continuation announcement in September 2026. Recently, the Chief Minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh confirmed that the Civil Services scholarship programme would continue. The event felicitated successful candidates of the fourth batch, and the Chief Minister noted that 31 candidates from the programme had cleared the Civil Services examinations conducted by the Manipur Public Service Commission. He also highlighted the Rs. 2.80 crore allocation that helps aspirants access quality coaching within their own state.

Scheme Benefits

The Manipur Chief Minister's Scholarship Scheme for Civil Services Aspirants provides scholarship and coaching support to selected candidates preparing for Civil Services examinations. The 2022-23 Government notification specified the following benefits:

• Selected candidates receive scholarship support for Civil Services examination coaching.
• The top 200 candidates in the merit list receive a 100% scholarship sponsored by the Government of Manipur with physical/face-to-face coaching.
• Candidates ranked 201 to 250 receive a 75% scholarship sponsored by ALS through online/VSAT coaching.
• Candidates ranked 251 to 300 receive a 60% scholarship through ALS online/VSAT coaching.
• Candidates ranked 301 to 400 receive a 50% scholarship through ALS online/VSAT coaching.
• Candidates ranked 401 to 500 receive a 40% scholarship through ALS online/VSAT coaching.
• Coaching for the fully funded top 200 candidates is conducted at the State Academy of Training, Takyelpat, Imphal, by IAS mentors from Delhi.
• Registration for the selection test is completely free of cost, with no application fee at any stage.

Eligibility Requirements

Before registering, candidates should check who can apply for the Chief Minister's Scholarship Scheme for Civil Services Aspirants, as the Directorate of University and Higher Education sets clear conditions on residence, qualification, and age, along with three categories of applicants who are specifically barred.

• The applicant must be a permanent resident of Manipur.
• The applicant must be a graduate, having already completed their degree.
• The applicant must have attained the age of 20 years on or before the cut-off date announced for that cycle.
• Candidates who are still pursuing graduation are not eligible to apply.
• Working professionals are not eligible to apply.
• Candidates who have already availed this scholarship under any slab in a previous cycle are not eligible to apply again.
• Selection is carried out as per the reservation norms of the Government of Manipur, following the state reservation roster.
• Age relaxation is available to eligible candidates, who must claim it at the time of registration.

Required Documents

Applicants need to keep the required documents ready while applying for the Chief Minister's Scholarship Scheme for Civil Services Aspirants. The official 2022-23 notification and scheme poster mention the following supporting documents:

• Valid identity proof
• Passport-size photograph
• Graduation certificate or graduation marksheet

Steps to Apply

Applicants can apply for the Chief Minister's Scholarship Scheme for Civil Services Aspirants online only, though the selection test that follows is held offline at designated centres. Here is how to apply for the scheme step by step.

• Wait for the Directorate of University and Higher Education, Government of Manipur, to release the notification for the current cycle.
• Check the eligibility conditions and the age cut-off date stated in that notification before proceeding.
• Open the registration link given in the notification, or scan the QR code printed on it, to reach the online application form.
• Fill in your personal details, permanent address in Manipur, category, and educational qualification.
• Upload your photograph, identity proof, and graduation certificate or mark sheet as required.
• Submit the completed registration form before the last date. Registration is free, and no fee is charged.
• Download your admit card online once it is issued by the department.
• Appear for the offline selection test at your allotted centre on the notified date.
• Check the merit list published on the Directorate of University and Higher Education website, where each rank carries the scholarship percentage awarded.
• Report to the coaching centre allotted to your scholarship slab and begin classes on the date announced by the department.

Registration opens only during the application window announced for each cycle, and the department uses a fresh registration link every year rather than a permanent application portal. Candidates should therefore follow the Directorate of University and Higher Education website and the official Government of Manipur social media channels for the current year's link, instead of relying on links circulated from earlier cycles.

Selection Process and Exam Details

Selection under the Chief Minister's Scholarship Scheme for Civil Services Aspirants is decided entirely by a written screening test, and the rank a candidate secures in it determines the scholarship slab they are placed in. Here are the exam details aspirants should know before appearing.

• Mode of exam: Offline, held physically at designated test centres.
• Question format: Objective type, multiple-choice questions.
• Duration: 2 hours.
• Reporting time: The test has been scheduled to begin at 11:00 AM in recent cycles.
• Syllabus: Current Affairs and NCERT books, with Manipur general knowledge also covered.
• Total questions: 100.
• Marking scheme: 2 marks are awarded for every correct answer, taking the paper to a maximum of 200 marks.
• Negative marking: 0.66 marks are deducted for every incorrect answer, which is one-third of the marks awarded for a correct answer.
• Unanswered questions: No marks are deducted for questions left blank.
• Admit card: Issued online to registered candidates ahead of the test date.
• Exam centres: Imphal has been a centre in every cycle, with Churachandpur, Senapati and Ukhrul used in different years depending on the notification.
• Result: A rank-wise merit list is published by the Directorate of University and Higher Education, showing each candidate's marks, category and scholarship percentage.
• Reservation: The merit list is drawn against the Manipur reservation roster, so rank order is not the same as raw score order.
• Age relaxation: Available to eligible candidates, and must be claimed at the time of registration.

The number of exam centres and the exact test timing are fixed afresh in each year's notification, so candidates should confirm both from the current advertisement rather than assuming the previous cycle's arrangements.

Relevant Links

• Manipur Chief Minister's Scholarship Scheme for Civil Services Aspirants Notification
• Chief Minister's Scholarship Scheme for Civil Services Aspirants Application Link is currently inactive.
• Directorate of University and Higher Education, Government of Manipur

Contact Information

• Manipur Higher Education Directorate Phone Number: 7085303429
• Manipur Higher Education Directorate Email: [email protected]