Media Release

Mangaluru, Aug 18: Vishwa Konkani Student Scholarship Fund, established by World Konkani Centre, Mangaluru will award merit-cum-means-scholarships worth Rs 3.5 crore to students from Konkani communities in a ceremony to be held on Thursday August 20 at 10 am at T V Raman Pai Convention Centre here. This day is also commemorated for inclusion of Konkani Language in 8th Schedule of the Constitution.

The principal patron of the scholarship programme T V Mohandas Pai, chairman, Manipal Global Education will deliver the keynote address. A galaxy of eminent philanthropists such as Sundeep V Bambolkar, joint managing director, Indoco Remedies Ltd, Mumbai, Ullas Kamath, joint managing director, Jyothy Laboratories Mumbai, S M Syed Khaleelur Rahaman, mentor, Anjuman Group of Institutions, Bhatkal, Jayanarayan Bhat, CEO, Raycam Ltd, United Kingdom, Rohan Monteiro, CEO, Rohan Corporation, Mangaluru and Prakash Pai, managing director, Puzzolana Group, Hyderabad will be present on the occasion and award the scholarships to deserving students.

Vishwa Konkani Student Scholarship Fund: 'Vishwa Konkani Student Scholarship Fund' envisages grant of merit-cum-means scholarship for students having Konkani language as their mother tongue. Instituted by the Mangaluru-based World Konkani Centre in the year 2010 as envisioned by the eminent thinker and corporate leader T V Mohandas Pai, the VKSSF has since then successfully raised and distributed over 8,000 scholarships to the tune of Rs 8 crore.

Eminent Konkani philanthropists like Dr Ranjan Pai, Dr P Dayanand Pai, Ramadas Kamath U, K V Kamath, M Jagannath Shenoi, Ronald Colaco, Grace Pinto, A Annappa S Kamath, Rohan Monteiro, Achuth Pai and Sons, Jaynarayana Bhat, Sandeep Shenoy, Aravind Rao, B R Bhat, T D Pai Pradeep G Pai and many more have come forward in support of this fund.

Programmes: VKSSF presently has several scholarship programmes, the flagship programme being the engineering and MBBS scholarship programme with a scholarship amount of Rs 30,000 and Rs 40,000 per year per student respectively. VKSSF has awarded 2,097 engineering and MBBS scholarships since 2010. This year too VKSSF will support the professional education quest of 602 engineering and 30 MBBS scholars.

Secondly, VKSSF also has a study abroad scholarship for higher education abroad, with scholarship amount of Rs 1 lakh per year per student. VKSSF has since 2010 awarded six scholarships under this programme and this year too will award five scholarships under this category.

In view of widening the scope of the scholarship fund VKSSF has initiated a new scheme in 2012 to empower communities like Kudubi, Kharvi etc. Under this scheme VKSSF awards PUC and degree scholarship with a scholarship amount of Rs 2500 and Rs 5000 respectively. VKSSF has a special programme for degree students of Konkani speaking communities from Kerala state. Apart from this VKSSF has also supported the scholarship programmes like Vidya Poshak Udupi and Kharvi Vidya Nidhi, Kundapur.

Kshamata: Kshamata is a programme under VKSSF which is a development model for all scholarship participants to accomplish with an end result of personal growth, leadership development, and a greater appreciation for the Konkani society in particular and global society in general. In last five years Kshamata academy has imparted 12,000 mandays of trainings in various formats.

Governance of the Fund: As the Fund is functioning on the basis of 'stream' concept, the entire amount generated every year will be distributed to the beneficiaries and no separate corpus will be maintained. Contributions to the Fund will be eligible for tax exemption under section 80(G) of the Income Tax Act.

'Vishwa Konkani Student Scholarship Fund' is administered by a governing council comprising eminent personalities. U Ramdas Kamath, executive vice-president, Infosys Technologies Ltd, Bengaluru is the chairman of the Fund and Pradeep G Pai, managing director of Hangyo Ice Creams Pvt Ltd, is the secretary. The council is also guided by Basti Vaman Shenoy, the founder and president of World Konkani Centre and board of trustees of Konkani Language and Cultural Foundation.