IIT Madras Director Stresses Village Outreach to Expand India's Higher Education Access

Expanding higher education access across India requires a focused outreach to rural communities, according to V Kamakoti, Director of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras. Speaking at a scholarship distribution event in Chennai, Kamakoti stated that villages represent the core of the country and are essential for scaling education and upskilling the population.

The event was organized to distribute the Sumangala Scholarship, a corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative by Chennai-based Sumangala Steel aimed at meritorious students from construction worker families. During the gathering, Kamakoti pointed to India's target of increasing its higher education Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) to 50 percent by 2035, noting that achieving this goal depends on empowering children in villages. He encouraged scholarship recipients to inform their peers about available financial assistance, suggesting that a peer-to-peer multiplier effect could rapidly expand coverage nationwide.

N Ravi, Director of Kasturi and Sons and The Hindu group, also spoke at the event, identifying the financing of education as one of the most effective forms of CSR. He noted that enabling youth to pursue courses previously beyond their reach equips them for higher-level jobs and raises the overall skill levels within the country.

During the ceremony, 20 students belonging to households with an annual income of less than ₹6 lakh were awarded the Sumangala Scholarship. The program covers education costs of up to ₹1 lakh per year and provides recipients with free laptops.

In addition to the new beneficiaries, 50 scholars from the past three editions of the program were facilitated. The first batch of these scholars is expected to graduate this year.

Rajendran Sabanayagam, Chairman of Sumangala Steel, remarked on the milestone for the initiative. He noted that the distribution of scholarships to the fourth batch marks the first time the program is supporting students across all four years of their engineering education.

"Corporate social responsibility initiatives targeting grassroots education play a critical role in building India's future talent pool. By supporting students from economically weaker backgrounds with structured financial assistance and tools like laptops, companies are directly addressing the skill gap in engineering and higher education. Programs that sustain support across all four years of study create a reliable pathway for students to complete their degrees and enter the formal workforce." — Dr. Shishir Gupta, Founder & CEO, StartupLanes