UGC NET Questions (Paper – 1)

Grant-in-aid refers to public funds provided to institutions or organisations to support their operations, projects or programmes without requiring repayment. In higher education, such grants help cover salaries, infrastructure and academic activities in public universities and colleges. The stem clearly describes financial assistance given without expectation of repayment, which is the defining feature of grant-in-aid. Therefore, Option C is the correct answer.

Option A:
Grant-in-aid is a form of subsidy that reflects the state’s commitment to education as a public good. It reduces the burden on students and allows institutions to offer programmes that may not be financially viable purely on fee income. These characteristics match the funding arrangement described in the question.

Option B:
Student loans are provided to individuals and must be repaid with interest, often after the completion of studies. They are personal financial instruments, not institutional grants, so this option is not appropriate.

Option C:
Cost recovery refers to raising revenue through fees and other charges so that institutions recover the costs of providing education. This is the opposite of receiving non-repayable assistance from the government, making this option incorrect.

Option D:
User charges are fees paid by students or other users for services such as tuition or hostel accommodation. They represent income from users rather than support from the state, so this option does not match the definition in the stem.