JK govt launches Mufti Mohammad Sayeed fellowship

The Jammu and Kashmir government today launched a fellowship named after former Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, under which up to 20 youths will be sent abroad to study in leading universities with an aim to develop into global leaders.

The Mufti Mohammad Sayeed Global Leaders Fellowship is aimed at reaching out to the educated youth in the state, an official spokesman said.

The State Knowledge Initiative Platform (SKIP), constituted under the chairmanship of the Advisor to Chief Minister, Amitabh Mattoo, has launched the fellowship in collaboration with J&K State Sports Council, the spokesman said.

"The fellowship seeks potential leaders who have the acumen to make a difference and aims to provide a select group of outstanding young men and women from Jammu and Kashmir the opportunity to study at some of the world's finest institutions for up to 12 months beginning in the academic session in 2019," the spokesman said.

He said a maximum of 20 fellows would be sent abroad in 2019.

The fellowship is inspired by the vision of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and is modelled after the well-known Rhodes Scholarships at the University of Oxford, he said.

"The selection to this prestigious fellowship shall be without prejudice to gender, marital status, religion, social background or disability," he added.

SKIP has identified six universities for the fellowship in 2019: Oxford and Cambridge (UK); Harvard, Yale and Princeton (US); and Melbourne (Australia), the spokesman said.

Mattoo said all applications received by SKIP will be vetted by a committee and eligible candidates will be invited for an interview.

The short-listed candidates will be finally screened by a jury chaired by a Nobel-laureate.

However, a candidate has to apply separately at the individual level for admission to a university, Mattoo said.

All selected fellows will have commit to serve Jammu and Kashmir for at least 12 months, he added.