The Maharashtra government today decided to introduce a foreign education scholarship scheme for the `open' (general) category and other backward class (OBC). Students from the Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) already get scholarship for studying in foreign varsities.
The new scheme will cover the open category students, OBCs, as well as those from `Vimukt Jaati and Bhatkya Jamati' (nomadic and denotified tribes), said an official from the Chief Minister's Office.
The selected students will get funding for taking admission to 200 leading foreign universities, said the official. "The students will also have a special fee rebate in top 25 universities," he said, adding that the emphasis will be on courses related to artificial intelligence, climate change, energy conservation, data analytics and nanotechnology. Thirty per cent of the scholarships will be reserved for women students.