# Odisha refunds ₹69.23 crore UG fees to 1.11 lakh students 2026-10-28T19:26:10+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet The Odisha higher education department has refunded ₹69.23 crore in admission fees to 1,11,678 undergraduate students who paid during the first phase of admissions for the 2026-27 academic session. The refund follows the government's announcement of the Gyanodaya, Shiksha Ru Samruddhi scheme, which provides free education from kindergarten to postgraduate levels in eligible government and government-aided institutions. The scheme was announced after the first phase of admissions. On Wednesday, 28 October 2026, the department asked students to check the bank accounts provided in their common application forms to verify whether the refund had been credited. It said a dedicated link would be made available shortly on the student academic management system (SAMS) portal for students who have not received their refunds due to incorrect bank account details or failed transactions. They will be able to use the facility to correct their bank details and facilitate the refund. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The refund directly benefits over 1.11 lakh students who would otherwise have borne the cost of first-phase fees before the free-education policy took effect. The department has not disclosed how many refund transactions failed or how long the correction facility on the SAMS portal will remain open, leaving affected students waiting for the dedicated link. Students whose bank details were incorrect must now act once the link goes live to complete the process. ## Coverage - timesofindia.indiatimes.com Straight news report of government action, no framing or commentary This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: Gyanodaya scheme, Odisha, SAMS portal Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/odisha-refunds-rs69-23-crore-ug-fees-to-1-11-lakh-students/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/odisha-refunds-rs69-23-crore-ug-fees-to-1-11-lakh-students/#story-in-brief How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/