Gandhinagar, Feb 27: Gujarat’s commitment to supporting higher education has enabled students from disadvantaged communities to pursue studies abroad, helping them build successful careers, said Bhikhusinh Parmar, Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, on Thursday.
He shared that a total of Rs 61 crore has been disbursed as education loans to 465 students from the developing castes category in Mehsana, Surat, and Banaskantha districts over the past two years. These loans, provided under the Foreign Study Loan Scheme, were sanctioned at Rs 15 lakh per student as of December 31, 2024.
The announcement was made in response to a query raised in the Gujarat Assembly.
Loan Details by District
Mehsana: Out of 297 applications, 224 were approved, leading to a disbursement of Rs 27.14 crore.
Surat: 182 out of 284 applications were sanctioned, resulting in Rs 26.57 crore granted.
Banaskantha: 59 out of 84 applications were approved, and Rs 7.33 crore was distributed.
Minister Parmar noted that the loan amount has increased over the years. In 2001, the scheme provided Rs 5 lakh per student, which was raised to Rs 10 lakh in 2007. Since 2014, the loan amount has been Rs 15 lakh, disbursed in a single installment to ease financial planning for students.
Gujarat’s Overseas Education Trends
In recent years, Gujarat has seen a growing number of students pursuing higher education abroad, with approximately 155,000 students from the state going overseas annually. However, shifting immigration policies in Western countries have introduced uncertainties, potentially leading to a decline in these numbers.
According to data from the Ministry of External Affairs, 48,051 students from Gujarat went abroad in 2017. This figure dropped to 23,156 in 2018 and further to 6,383 in 2019. Gujarat, along with Delhi and Tamil Nadu, contributes about 8% to the total number of Indian students studying abroad.
The migration of Gujaratis for education and other opportunities has evolved over time, influenced by factors such as land-holding patterns and economic prospects.
Related topics:
