Bengaluru, May 15 (PTI) Azim Premji Foundation announced Azim Premji Scholarship on Thursday to support girls pursuing higher education after school.

Speaking to PTI, Anurag Behar, Chief Executive Officer, Azim Premji Foundation, said they have decided on 18 states: Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

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"These states were chosen because we have more partners and more ground presence in these states. Our intention is to expand it to the whole country by next academic year or the year after at most," said Behar.

According to him, they have really simple eligibility criteria. "Girls who have done their class 10 and 12 schooling in government schools with admission in a bona-fide higher education institution in a degree or diploma programme," added Behar.

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Selected students will receive Rs 30,000 per year, payable in two instalments.

"After the completion of the year, and once it is verified that they are continuing their education, the next cycle will begin. This will continue until they complete their course," said Behar.

Behar said they are likely to sponsor nearly 2.5 lakh students.

"We did a pilot round in the academic year 2024-25, containing ourselves to Madhya Pradesh, and certain districts of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Jharkhand. We received nearly 1.10 lakh applications. Out of which only 25,000 were eligible," he added.

The Foundation, said Behar, is making a significant commitment to support girls to pursue higher education.

"This will help them gain greater control over their life's trajectory," he added.

The application process for the 2025-26 cycle will start in September 2025.

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