It made my dream come true,? says 22-year-old Kanchan Bahirat who won the L?Oreal India for Young Women in Science Scholarship. She is now an engineering graduate. With her father as the sole earning member in a family of five, it was difficult to fund Bahirat?s dream to become an engineer. A Rs 2.5 lakh scholarship from L?Oreal for four years allowed Bahirat to pursue the engineering degree and now after completing it she is preparing to do her M Tech. The L?Oreal Scholarships for Young Women in Science is a programme instituted by the cosmetic giant to encourage young women pursue an education and career in science. The programme is aimed at reinforcing the role of women in scientific disciplines.
The scholarship got a fillip when Indira Nath, an immunologist, won the L?Oreal-UNESCO Award for Women in Science in 2002 for the Asia/Pacific region. Nath helped develop the programme, which initially started with sponsoring the education of three economically challenged girls from Mumbai. It has now increased the numbers by sponsoring five girls from Mumbai and Pune as well.
Says Dinesh Dayal, COO, L?Oreal India Ltd, ?With the aim to increase the awareness of the scholarship programme across the state of Maharashtra, we have now planned a seminar in Nagpur. This is to reach out to deserving junior college girl students and make them aware of the programme.?
The objective of the programme is to provide financial assistance to meritorious students in science for a period of four years in their chosen scientific field, at a recognised Indian university. A scholarship of Rs 2.5 lakh each is granted to girls who achieve an aggregate of over 85% in physics, chemistry, maths or physics, chemistry, biology in their 12th grade, from a college in Mumbai and now in Pune too. The scholarship money is paid directly to the colleges and the student is free from worries with regards to any fees.
Explaining the synergy between the scholarship and the company, Dayal says: ?We employ nearly 3,000 researchers worldwide, of which 55% are women. The company has designed and patented 120 molecules over the last 40 years and we develop 4,000 formals each year. In 2006, we filed as many as 569 patents.?
The selection for the scholarship is underway. A series of free seminars on `Careers In Science For Women? are underway, with experts talking here. ?The world needs science and science needs women,? says Dayal, stressing that students like Bahirat would have otherwise been lost to science as they face economic challenges.