India’s Ministry of Communications recently launched a national philatelic scholarship program for students in an attempt to promote the hobby to the country’s youth.
According to government press release, the scholarship program—known as Deen Dayal SPARSH Yojana (Scholarship for Promotion of Aptitude & Research in Stamps as a Hobby)—will be available to a total of 920 students. Each student will be given 500 Indian rupees (about $10 Cdn.) each month for a year by India’s Department of Post.
“The Minister said that to avail this scholarship, a child must be a student of a recognized school within India and the concerned school should have a Philately Club and the candidate should be a member of the Club. In case the school Philately Club hasn’t been established a student having his own Philately Deposit Account will also be considered,” reads the press release.
“Every prospective school, which participates in the competition, would be assigned a Philately mentor to be chosen from amongst the renowned Philatelists. The Philately mentor would help in formation of the School level Philately Club, providing guidance to young and aspiring Philatelists on how to pursue the hobby and also helping the aspiring Philatelists on their Philately Projects etc.”
“The scholarship scheme would help in motivating schoolchildren to select philately as their premier hobby,” Anant Narayan Nanda, India’s Department of Posts secretary, told New Delhi’s Millennium Post in a story published last November. “The scholarship scheme is also open for students of those schools where [a] Philately Club is not being established, as in this case the student having his own philately deposit account will be considered.”