The Education Innovation Fund for India (EIFI), a collaborative project between the Hewlett-Packard Office of Global Social Innovation and the India Council for Integral Education (ICIE), an initiative of the Sri Aurobindo Society, Puducherry, was launched here on Tuesday.
Among those present at the launch were the US Consul General in Chennai Jennifer A.McIntyre, Editor-in-Chief of TheHindu N. Ram, Sri Ramachandra Medical College and Research Institute Vice-Chancellor S. Rangaswami and ICIE Chairman Vijay Poddar.
EIFI has been set up to provide grants to schools, universities and organisations that support and encourage innovative projects which bring about a transformation in the field of education. It would be a platform that identifies ideas from all over India and finds ways to implement these ideas on a larger scale, which would help the country as a whole.
HP has already given US $ 1 million to the Sri Aurobindo Society, which would be managing the fund. A Rs.1 crore grant would be given to the ‘Most Promising Project in Educational Innovation'.
There are also other grants, including one where 15 applicants could get up to Rs.15 lakh each and another for young learners and young innovators. The young learners and youth innovators grants are part of the initiative to encourage innovation in education among the youth. All youth learners would receive an award amount of Rs.11,000 each if chosen. They would also receive a grant up to Rs.1 lakh depending on their project requirement.
Grant awards that are to be chosen by a jury consisting of prominent leaders in various fields would be announced in January, 2012. Details about the grant can be had from www.eifi.aurosociety.org. Educational institutions and not-for-profit organisations can contact Aishwarya Ramanujam, who manages the fund at aishwarya@eifi.aurosociety.org.
