Indian education fair begins in Dhaka

A two-day Indian education fair, Education Meet 2021, started in the capital on Friday.

The fair seeks to inform prospective Bangladeshi students about the opportunities for higher studies in various universities and colleges in India.

The fair began yesterday at 10am at The Westin Dhaka hotel and will continue till 6pm today (Saturday).

Under the Study in India programme, Education Excellence in collaboration with the Indian Embassy hosted the fair, which is free for all to attend.

Deputy High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh Bishwadip Dey inaugurated the fair as the chief guest on Friday morning.

Sandeep Goel, CFO of EdCIL India Limited and CGM - Study in India programme, told The Business Standard the event is being held to inform Bangladeshi students about the scope of higher education opportunities in India.

The Government of India is providing scholarships for foreign students. The maximum annual stipend for a foreign student is $3,500, which includes tuition fees, hostel and mess fees, he said.

Sandeep Goel said that 300 students from Bangladesh received Indian scholarships last year mostly to study Information Technology, Hospitality and Nursing.

According to the fair's organisers, there are opportunities to pursue diploma, undergraduate, postgraduate and PhD degrees in India with scholarships for over 2,600 courses including: engineering, business administration, emerging technology, law, and other subjects in the humanities.

India has one lakh seats of higher studies for international students. Of them, 2,000 meritorious students can obtain scholarships and 60,000 can have the opportunity of receiving a 25% to 100% tuition fee waiver, they said.

The fair is attended by 15 Indian colleges and university level educational institutions including: Shiv Nadar University, Manipal University, JAIN University, Koneru Lakshmaiah Education Foundation, Institutes of Eminence, and JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research.

A lot of aspiring students turned up at the fair yesterday.

A prospective student, Arup Sarkar, said he has completed his Honours in English at a home university and now wants to study in India with a scholarship.

"I came to the fair to learn whether scholarships are available to pursue higher studies there. I also brought my laptop to apply for a scholarship to some universities in India," he added.

Manipal University Head of International Admission Asgar Hossain told The Business Standard, "We have an agreement with the Ministry of Education, India, to offer scholarships to international students."

"We offer higher education courses on Health Science, Science and Technology and Management. Additionally, there are Humanities, Liberal Arts and Science departments in our university," he added.

EdCIL India Limited Executive Director Dr Uttam B and Samira Farhat Amin, founder and CEO of Sapate, Education Excellence, attended the inaugural function.

Education Meet 2021 is held under the Study in India programme and has an agreement with the top 100 educational institutions of India.

Applications can be made to study at the listed Indian universities by visiting the website www.studyinindia.gov.in.

The Study in India programme started in 2016 under the Ministry of Education of the Government of India.

It has been encouraging students from all over the world to pursue their higher education in India through scholarships.

So far, students from around 150 countries in South Asia, Africa, Southeast Asia, Central Asia, and the Middle East have received their higher education under the Study in India programme.