Pune: In a bid to motivate and aid the students, Rajarshi Shahu Maharaj Social Foundation (RSMSF) will award 150 underprivileged students from rural, tribal areas across the state with scholarships to pursue higher education.
The foundation has been working in the field of education in rural and tribal areas of the state for five years. Amongst the 150 students who will be getting the scholarship, five are from Mahagao village near Lohagad in Maval taluka who will be the first ones from their community (Katkari tribe) to study after Std X. The foundation also runs programme of taking up educational guardianship of underprivileged children and has helped more than 1,000 students now.
“The foundation has been working in the villages of Bhima Takali (Shirur taluka), Mahagao (Maval taluka) and Vathar (Bhor taluka) to provide the zilla parishad schools with libraries and computer laboratories. We believe that the poor people from the rural areas find it even more difficult to afford or get access to education. To help them, we have motivated many people to spend the money that they are going to spend on grand weddings or birthdays, on the education of the underprivileged children,” Vikas Pasalkar, Executive Director of the foundation said.
Till next year, the foundation aims to touch lives of at least 5,000 students across the state by helping them pursue education and reduce the number of dropouts in the state.
Shahu Maharaj Social Awards 2018
The foundation is also hosting its fourth edition of Rajarshi Shahu Maharaj Social Awards on June 30, at 5 pm at Jawaharlal Nehru Auditorium, Ghole Road. The awards will be given away by Yuvaraj Sambhaji Raje Chhatrapati, MP and Digambar Deshmukh, former director, Maharashtra State Education Department.
The awardees are
- Social work: Rahul Pokale (Founder President, Rashtraseva Samuha)
- Sports: Rajesh Dhamadhere (Director, Rajmata Jijau Women’s Kabaddi Team) and Bhagawan Chavale (Everest veer, May 17, 2018)
- Social Law Expert: Milind Pawar
- Journalism: Dattakumar Khandagale (Senior Journalist)
- Competitive Examinations: Dr Girish Badole (First in Maharashtra, UPSC 2018) and Amol Pawar (UPSC 2018)
- Special awards: Dr Ganapat More (School for underprivileged children)
- Jagruti Social Foundation: (Significant contribution to eye donation)
Shivsahyadri Durgasanvardhan (Conservation work at Kille Santoshgad, Phaltan)
- Maratha Warriors Team: (Cycle expedition from Pune to Wagha Border)
Nilesh Khandale (Rajarshi Shahu Maharaj Short Film Festival)
