Hyderabad: Scores of applicants who applied for the Rajiv Yuva Vikasam scheme towards self-employment of the youth in the State were left disappointed as the officers in the GHMC’s ward offices had stopped accepting applications which were already submitted online. More than 1.3 lakh applications have been received from Hyderabad district.

The Rajiv Yuva Vikasam scheme offers financial support of up to Rs 4 lakh to youth from underprivileged sections, with subsidy and bank loan. The applicants who have already applied online for the scheme, when they visited the GHMC ward office on Tuesday, the officers rejected their online application citing that the deadline for the scheme ended on April 14.

Prashant, an applicant, said that officials at both the ward office and the finance corporation rejected the online acknowledgment form on Tuesday. He emphasised, “If the deadline has passed, how can someone still apply online and possess a beneficiary ID? It’s crucial for higher authorities to step in and direct the officers to accept the applications that have already been submitted for the scheme.”

As per the rules, the applicants must apply for the financial support on a portal provided by the government and submit the application form at concerned ward offices and finance corporations.

Mohammed Ahmed, minority spokesperson, TDP, highlighted that the application period coincided with several public holidays, including Ugadi, Ramzan, Jagjivan Ram Jayanti, the second Saturday, and Ambedkar Jayanti, on the final date of April 14. This situation adversely affected various government services. Additionally, for many days, the website experienced significant slowdowns or was entirely inaccessible, causing the application process to hang or crash, which frustrated users and delayed in applying.

Ahmed said, “Candidates who attempted to submit their applications online faced numerous challenges, and when they visited the ward office, officials refused to accept their submissions, claiming the deadline had passed, leaving many aspirants disheartened.”

Mohammed Aleemuddin, an applicant at Bahadurpura mandal, expressed his frustration, stating, “The officials are refusing to accept my application for the scheme, which I submitted a few days back but couldn’t deliver in person due to the public holidays.”

He suggested that the officers should at least acknowledge the submission date on the online application before rejecting.

As per data, over 67,321 applications were received through the Minorities Finance Corporation, while BC/EBC Finance Corporations have received a total 34,719 applications. 26,260 applications were received at SC Finance Corporation, and 3,248 applications at ST Finance Corporation.