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New Delhi: The Odisha government on Wednesday launched the ‘Videsh Siksha Bruti’ scheme, marking a major step towards supporting meritorious Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe students aspiring to pursue higher studies abroad.

Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj formally inaugurated the scheme, which will be implemented from the 2025–26 academic year.

Under the scheme, SC and ST students from families with an annual income of Rs 12 lakh or below will be eligible.

Applicants must have secured admission to postgraduate or PhD programmes in the Top 200 QS-ranked foreign universities or institutions, the minister said.

Suraj said applications will be invited twice a year — in July–August and December–January.

“Each year, 50 students will be selected for the scholarship. Of these, 10 (four PG and six PhD) will be from engineering and technical education; 10 (four PG and six PhD) from medical, agriculture, architecture and other technical streams; and 30 (10 PG and 20 PhD) from higher education,” he said.

Each selected student will receive a scholorship of up to Rs 25 lakh per year to support their studies, the minister said.

In addition to the launch of the scholarship scheme, the department also issued appointment letters to 34 candidates in Group C and D posts across aided colleges under rehabilitation assistance.

The newly appointed recruits received their appointment letters from the minister.

The event also saw a key milestone with the Odisha State Higher Education Council (OSHEC) receiving copyright to conduct Academic Performance Audits (APA) of higher educational institutions across the state.

This will enable OSHEC to assess and enhance academic standards, making Odisha the first state in the country to adopt such a system, Suraj added.