New Delhi- Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi has written to Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy seeking a major expansion of the state’s overseas scholarship scheme so that it covers the full cost of higher education abroad for students from economically weaker SC, ST and OBC families.

In a letter dated 24 October, Gandhi enclosed a memorandum from the Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar National Association of Engineers (BANAE) and urged the state government to bridge the wide funding gap that currently forces many meritorious students to either forgo admission or take on heavy debt.

“Every year, children of Telangana’s agricultural labourers, weavers, small farmers and daily-wage workers earn admission to the world’s finest universities. Many are the first in their families ever to step into a college. They have done everything asked of them. Yet for most, the admission letter is where the dream ends, because of the high cost of an overseas education,” Gandhi wrote.

He noted that the cost of studying in the United States or Europe often exceeds ₹50 lakh, while Telangana’s existing overseas scholarships are capped at up to ₹20 lakh. “The gap is too wide to bridge,” he said, adding that the brightest students from the poorest homes either abandon their seats or struggle under loans they will find hard to repay.

Gandhi specifically requested that Telangana enhance its scheme to cover the full cost of tuition, lodging, boarding and travel. He pointed to Karnataka’s Prabuddha Overseas Scholarship, which already provides comprehensive support for students from low-income Dalit and Adivasi families.

Invoking Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s own journey of studying at Columbia University and the London School of Economics before returning to draft the Constitution, Gandhi appealed: “Let no child who follows this path be turned back from realising their dreams.”

Speaking to The Mooknayak, Nagsen Sonare, National President of BANAE, said the organisation has been persistently demanding a dedicated “Telangana State Overseas Scholarships Scheme for SC-ST and OBC community.” He referred to BANAE’s earlier memorandum dated 19 April 2023 and a fresh representation dated 30 December 2024 submitted to the Chief Minister.

Sonare highlighted that Maharashtra has been implementing the Rajashree Shahu Maharaj Overseas Scholarship for Scheduled Castes since 2003-04. The scheme was later extended by the Tribal Welfare and OBC welfare departments. As of now, Maharashtra offers 75 scholarships for Master’s and PhD programmes to SC students, 25 to ST students and 75 to OBC students. These scholarships provide 100% funding covering tuition fees, lodging, boarding, incidental expenses, visa fees and to-and-fro air travel.

Karnataka, he said, has been running the Prabuddha Overseas Scholarship since 2017-18, sanctioning a total of 400 scholarships for SC, ST and OBC students for Master’s and PhD programmes at universities ranked in the top 300 of the QS rankings. Eligible students must secure admission on their own merit. The scheme similarly covers tuition, lodging, boarding, incidental expenses, visa fees and airfare.

“These overseas scholarship schemes are successfully operating in Maharashtra and Karnataka and have been appreciated by the SC-ST-OBC community, political parties and academics,” Sonare told The Mooknayak. He added that the schemes have helped create a notable presence of scholars from these communities in engineering, management, science and technology, medicine, law, social sciences, agriculture, environmental science, art and design. The availability of highly qualified professionals from underprivileged backgrounds also aids faculty recruitment in premier institutions such as IITs, IIMs, NITs, NIFTs and AIIMS, and strengthens participation of SC-ST-OBC communities in governance.

Sonare urged the Telangana government to approve and sanction the scheme at the earliest. He recommended that the necessary budget provision be made from the SC and ST Annual Sub-Plan and the general OBC budget, following the practice of Maharashtra and Karnataka. BANAE has also attached the relevant government orders of both states with its representation.

The demand underscores the need for parity with neighbouring states that have institutionalised full-cost overseas education support for students from historically marginalised communities for over two decades in Maharashtra and nearly a decade in Karnataka.