Azim Premji Foundation to Award Scholarships to 2.5 Lakh Girls Across India, Check Eligibility Criteria
The Azim Premji Foundation announced on Thursday a new scholarship program aimed at supporting up to 2.5 lakh girl students from government schools across 18 states to pursue higher education.
Under this initiative, eligible girls who have completed their 10th and 12th grades in government schools and secured admission into recognized higher education institutions (HEIs) will receive an annual scholarship of ₹30,000. These recognized institutions include all government HEIs and selected private HEIs. The scholarship will be provided each year throughout the duration of the student’s college or university course, as long as she continues her studies successfully.
“There is no additional criteria or eligibility for the candidates. We are not conducting any exams or checking the financial backgrounds of the students,” said Anurag Behar, the Chief Executive Officer of the Azim Premji Foundation.
He stated the reason for such a type of screening was that more than 90% of government school children come from disadvantaged backgrounds. The scholarship aims to ease some of the financial burdens of girl students pursuing a higher education, rather than focus on too many checklists or screening processes.
He also noted that while primary school admissions for girls were almost equal to those of boys, higher education admission numbers showed a lesser percentage of girls. “Tuition fees are often waived off or given at a discount for girls from disadvantaged financial backgrounds. But additional expenses like commute, clothes, books etc discourage them from pursuing their higher education,” he explained.
A pilot test of the ‘Azim Premji Scholarship’ was launched in 2024-25 across certain districts of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Jharkhand, where over 25,000 girls were selected for the scholarship. For the academic year of 2025-26, the scholarship has officially been launched across 18 States, some of which include Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Karnataka, Telangana, Tripura, Odisha, and Mizoram.
The application process for 2025-26 will start in September 2025. Students can apply online. The scholarship program is a ₹2,250 crore commitment across three years by the foundation, and is likely to be expanded to cover the entire country in coming years.