Modi government is launching a Scholarship scheme with the highest ever grant in the country to promote research and prevent brain drain.

Under the scheme named Prime Minister Research Fellowship, cleared by the Cabinet on Wednesday, 1,000 meritorious B. Tech students will get monthly scholarships of Rs 70,000 and a one-time research grant of Rs 2 lakh. The Cabinet has approved Rs. 1,650 crore for a period of seven years for the scheme, beginning in 2018-19.

“Under this scheme, the best students who have completed or are in the final year of B. Tech or Integrated M.Tech or M. Sc. in Science and Technology streams from IISc, IITs, NITs, IISERs, and IIITs will be offered direct admission in Ph. D. programme in the IITs or IISc,” said the government.

The selected students will be offered a fellowship of Rs.70, 000/- per month for the first two years, Rs.75, 000/- per month for the 3rd year, and Rs.80, 000/- per month in the 4th and 5th years. Apart from this, a research grant of Rs.2.00 lakh will be provided to each of the Fellows for a period of 5 years to enable them to participate in international research conferences and present research papers. A maximum of 3,000 Fellows would be selected in a three year period beginning 2018-19.

HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said that the scheme will go a long way in tapping the talent pool of the country for carrying out research indigenously in cutting edge science and technology domains. He further added that the research under the Scheme will address our national priorities at the one hand and shortage of quality faculty in the premier educational institutions of the country, on the other. This initiative of the government will convert brain drain to brain gain.

“The scholarship will be for research in frontier areas — intelligence, nanotechnology etc… this is the most ambitious scheme… this is the biggest scholarship for research being provided to the brightest of the brightest. At present, the maximum amount any research scholarship gives is Rs 28,000,” said the HRD Minister.

He said scholarship holders would also be exempted from doing master’s and would be allowed to enrol directly for Ph. D.

“Only those countries advance which are innovating. We are not an innovating country… Our attempt is to turn the ‘brain drain’ into ‘brain gain’, which we will achieve by providing guidance, research facilities and scholarships — things for which our students go to foreign shores,” said Javadekar.

He said 3,000 students will be given the scholarship in the first three years, 4,000 in the fourth year, and thereafter at anytime about 4,000-5,000 students will be availing of this scholarship.

To be eligible for the scholarship a student must at least achieve a cumulative grade point average of 8.0, in addition to a cutting-edge idea for research.

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