The National Merit Scholarship Scheme is a scholarship program run by India, with the purpose of giving financial aid to meritorious students from low income families. The scholarships are awarded based on standardized test scores, and are given to students between the ages of 18 and 25. Fifty percent of these scholarships are earmarked for women, and students must be above the 80th percentile of their class ranking to qualify. Examining bodies draw up lists of potential scholarship recipients and within weeks of examinations, these students are contacted by registered letter and are given 15 days to respond to the offer. If the state board has not been contacted within 30 days, the scholarship offer is withdrawn completely and offered to another student. The scholarship pays for 10 months in an academic year, and students may renew the scholarships yearly up to graduation but may not receive more than five years of this scholarship. Students receive these scholarships directly into their bank accounts.
The HRD offers post-matric scholarships in Hindi for students from non-Hindi speaking states within India. The main purpose of this scholarship is to "encourage the study of Hindi in non-Hindi speaking states and to make available to the governments of these states, suitable personnel to teach and provide employees in areas where Hindi is essential. Only residents from certain non-Hindi speaking areas are eligible, and the application for this scholarship must be obtained from the state, rather than national offices. Additionally, only certain classes at certain academic institutions qualify for use with this scholarship. The scholarship is allotted to the student in monthly increments through the school.
According to its website, "the Educational Loan Scheme of the Indian Banks' Association" allows students "to pursue technical/professional education studies in India." While in school, the government will provide a full interest subsidy for "any of the approved courses of studies in technical and professional streams, from recognized institutions in India."
India's national government also offers scholarships to its students that would like to study abroad. Currently, 14 countries participate in this program including China, Korea, Israel, Japan, UK, Belgium, Italy, Mexico, Norway and Turkey. Eligibility for this scholarship is based on merit and residency. You must be a resident of India, and if the student has been out of the country, he must live in India for two years prior to applying for this scholarship. Students are expected to have knowledge about India and the host country.