SHUBHANGI SHIFA
Ranchi, Aug 23: The Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren and the British High Commissioner to India on behalf of the Jharkhand Government and UK Government respectively signed an MoU regarding the Chevening Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh Munda Scholarship Scheme (Chevening MGJSM Scholarship) on Tuesday.
The scholarship aims to provide fully funded scholarships to students of the SC, ST, minority and BC categories for one-year studies in programmes in several UK universities. The Jharkhand government in partnership with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), British High Commission, New Delhi in collaboration is to provide the benefits of the scholarship programme to the marginalized and underrepresented communities of the state.
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Notably, the Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh Munda Overseas Scholarship is to provide financial support to 25 aspirants of the SC, ST, BC and minority communities. Of these, scholarships for five students will be jointly covered by the state and UK governments under the Chevening MGJSM Scholarship.
Addressing the audience on the occasion, Alex Ellis, British High Commissioner to India said, “Investing in Education and climate are our best gifts to our children. I’m delighted that today, with the support of CM Soren and our partners across the state, we are able to do that.”
Here, the High Commissioner was referring to the launch of the Jharkhand module of the Climate Resilience Information System and Planning (CRISP-M) tool. It is notably a web and mobile phone-based geographic information system that will support the planning, implementation and monitoring of the Mahatma Gandhi NREGA scheme.
Referring to his visit to India as an 18-year-old, Ellis further added, “An education in another country can be a defining experience. I’m pleased that each year five brilliant scholars from the state will have the opportunity to study at the UK’s world-leading universities with full financial support.”
Stressing on the importance of education, Chief Minister Soren said, “This is an effort by us to provide as many opportunities to the youth in Jharkhand. Jharkhand is considered one of the several backward states in India in terms of education; however, we have taken this initiative to improve the state’s condition in this regard.”
He further talked about the process of working for the scholarship. He added, “Several students of the backward classes want to complete higher education abroad. However, due to financial reasons, they are not able to do so. This initiative by the government aims to help such students so that they can fulfil their dreams and then come back to India to work for the betterment of the society at large.”
Students that have received the opportunity to go abroad this year under the scholarship were also present on the occasion and shared their experiences. Among these were Sameer Gupta and Nidhi Kispotta, who addressed the audience and talked about their aims after their education in the UK.
Furthermore, Supriya Chawla, Head, Chevening India gave an introduction to the Chevening programme and the context of the Chevening Marang Gomke joint scholarship. Prof Dr Sonjhariya Minz, Vice Chancellor Sido kanhu Murmu University, Dumka talked about the significance of the Chevening Marang Gomke Overseas Scholarship for the youth of Jharkhand. Daljeet Kaur, Climate and Environment advisor set the context on building the climate resilience of the poor in Jharkhand with the help of a video.
Those who were also present on the occasion were Nick Lowe, British Deputy High Commissioner; Minister of Transport, Scheduled Tribe, Scheduled Caste and Backward Class Welfare Champai Soren, Minister of Minorities Welfare Hafizul Hasan, Secretary Welfare Department K K Soan among others.
