09/23/2026
What began as a tribute to my grandparents has grown into a 10-year commitment to student opportunity at the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur.
In 2014, I established four scholarships at IITK in their memory. A decade later, during our batch’s Golden Jubilee, we took a bigger step: creating 26 Swami Dayanand Education Foundation Scholarships, each providing ₹50,000 to ₹1 lakh per student, a total commitment of ₹1.6 crore over 10 years.
This September, I returned to campus and met 20 scholarship recipients - 11 in person and nine virtually. Listening to their journeys brought this initiative's purpose to life. A scholarship does more than ease a financial burden; it gives a talented student greater freedom to learn, aspire, and move forward with confidence.
We are working with the Dean of Resources & Alumni (DoRA) at IIT Kanpur to double the number of scholarships, as we feel giving back to IITK is the best use of our support.
We now hope to build a lasting network of mentorship and engagement around these students. I look forward to returning to IIT Kanpur in six months, following their progress, and seeing the SDEF Scholarship community grow into a powerful circle of opportunity and impact.
When alumni invest in students, the impact can extend far beyond a single scholarship.
- Ashutosh Garg
