Washington based Sikh Foundation Awards 106 Scholarships to Needy College Students in Punjab and North India
Washington (February 20, 2005) The Washington-based Sikh Human Development
Foundation (SHDF) has awarded 102 scholarships to needy students in Punjab and
neighboring states for the academic year 2005.
Amar Jit Singh Sodhi, Chairman of SHDF and former World Bank official, stated: "I am
glad that we have exceeded our target of 100 scholarships for the current academic year.
We had started with 22 scholarships in the year 2000-01. We hope to set a more ambitious
target in the coming years."
SHDF, focused to task of poverty alleviation and gender equity, is perhaps the only
Sikh organization, which grants scholarships to needy students for higher professional
education in Punjab. Founded by a group of Sikh professionals in the Washington
metropolitan area in 1999, the Foundation has awarded over 300 scholarships to Sikh and
non-Sikh students.
Mr. Sodhi added, "The inspiration for this effort comes from the Sikh principle of
Seva, which is to render service to humanity. We have seen dramatic difference this
financial aid is making to the lives of our disadvantaged youth back home. This provides
them with an opportunity to shape their own destiny and become productive citizens."
According to Mr. Sodhi, most of the recipients face serious economically challenging
situations; their per capita family income is less than a dollar a day. "It is a soul
uplifting experience to see how timely financial assistance is helping the sons and
daughters of poor widows, terminally sick breadwinners of the family, daily wage laborers,
peons, pensioners, bicycle repairers, laboratory assistants and the like, pursue costly
medical, engineering and similar professional degree or post graduate courses, and build
their lives", added Mr. Sodhi.
"It is also gratifying to see a wholesome trend emerging", said Dr. Rajwant Singh, a
founding member of the SHDF. "Some of our earlier scholarship recipients, who have by
now completed their degree courses and have been employed, are in turn financing the
cost of higher education of their siblings. The cascading impact of this trend will,
over time, be a solid contribution towards poverty reduction and building of intellectual
capital in the country".
"If I am able to succeed with the help of this scholarship, it would be a lighthouse for
those in my area who don't get into the higher education in technical fields just because
now-a-days education is 'NOT' for the poor", writes Kiranjyoti Kaur Minhas, one of the
scholarship recipients this year from a village in Jalandhar District. "Many students
don't opt for these", continues Kiranjyoti, "as they know that a lot of money would be
needed and they have their younger siblings also along with them." The most important
thing is that this scholarship would be "a motivation for me to work hard as my
self-conscious would keep on reminding me that along with my parents, there are many
other people waiting for my success. It would direct me to the right path, if I tend
to go wrong. My goal in life is to be on the top."
Mr. Sodhi said, "Success stories of these students inspire us and helps us to reach out
to more donors within USA. This gives an opportunity to people to share the fruits of
their prosperity in the West and make a profound difference in the life of some one less
fortunate back home. We are also encouraged by the tremendous support from the Sikh
gurdwaras abroad and individuals. We now plan to go nation-wide and reach out to the
community in different states for their support to expand our program."
Mr. Sodhi also stated that the executive council members of SHDF have been touring
Punjab and other states to create a network to identify needy students. Harbaksh Singh
Sethi, a SHDF member, during his extended stays in India, is continually making contacts
for this purpose. SHDF has partnered with both the Punjab Agriculture University in
Ludhiana and the Guru Nanak Dev University in Amritsar, and is planning to reach out
to more educational institutions, particularly in the rural areas.
SHDF has also assisted Hindu and Muslim students in Gujarat after the earthquake in 2001
and is contemplating assisting students hit by Tsunami disaster in South India.
According to Gajinder S. Ahuja, Secretary General of SHDF, special attention is paid
by the organization to support female students. Over 52% of these scholarships have gone
to female students. Overall, 56% of the scholarships have been given to students from
rural areas. These students were drawn from the states of Punjab, J&K, Haryana, Delhi
and Chandigarh. The scholarship amount is calibrated to the needs of the student and is
renewed with the recipient maintaining a minimum academic score.
Mr. Surinder Singh, SHDF Treasurer stated that the average cost of an annual scholarship
is around US$ 350. Other members of the executive council of SHDF are Harbaksh Singh
Sethi, Veena Kaur Oberoi, Anita Kaur Arora and Dr. Rajwant Singh.
To contact Sikh Human Development Foundation, write to: 15129 Winesap Drive,
North Potomac, MD 20878 or http://shdf.org/
About Sikh Human Development Foundation:
The SHDF Mission is to financially assist meritorious and needy students in selected
parts of India to improve their access to higher professional education, and thereby
help them grow to their full potential. In this effort, SHDF pays special attention
to those affected by natural calamities and social upheavals; it is also committed to
gender equity in the award of financial assistance. The term 'professional education'
includes disciplines like medicine, engineering, agriculture, nursing, home science,
information technology, business administration, architecture and accountancy. SHDF
provides its donors an institutional mechanism, which cost-effectively facilitates
the identification of the right kind of students, assesses their financial status,
calibrates the size of the scholarship to each applicant's needs and makes arrangements
to monitor their academic performance. The SHDF program gives an opportunity to
persons of Indian origin in USA as well as others to share the fruits of their
success and prosperity and make a profound difference in the life of some one less
fortunate. The beneficiary students includes orphans, and wards of widows, sick
parents, drivers, bicycle repairers, pensioners and others; most of them from
families with gross family income not exceeding US $ 2000 per year.
In India, SHDF operates largely through the Nishkam Sikh Welfare Council (Nishkam),
a registered NGO. Nishkam has two decades of unblemished record of social service.
Nishkam invites applications, holds a written moral science test at selected locations,
conducts interviews, sends its recommendations with relevant documents to SHDF, and
upon approval by SHDF, disburses the scholarships and follows up on the student's
performance. Nishkam maintains separate accounts for SHDF, which are regularly
audited. The SHDF has also some direct links with the vice chancellors of universities
in Punjab, to stay current with the state of professional education as well as to
provide financial assistance to some really needy students who could not be captured
through the Nishkam net.
The SHDF is inspired by the concept of Seva (service) in Sikh religion. In the Sikh
way of life, rendering service to humanity (i.e. God in man), and responding to the
pain and need of others, is the prime duty of a householder. The Sikh scriptures
require that true service must be guileless, in humility, with purity of intention,
with sincerity, and in utter selflessness. The daily prayer of millions of sikhs,
whether in congregations or individually, ends with a supplication for the welfare of
all. This ideal of service transcends distinctions of caste, color, gender, religion
and nationality.
SHDF believes that investment in education will brighten the future of these young
people like no other form of investment. Investment in knowledge always pays the best
interest, draws the best out of a human being and provides the best ability to meet
life's challenges.
