SAMBALPUR: A retired teacher of Kendriya Vidyalaya on Monday donated Rs 20 lakh to Gangadhar Meher University (GMU) for instituting two fellowships to be awarded to as many PhD scholars with at least one female scholar.
Aparna Mahapatra and her family donated the sum on behalf of Roshni Mahapatra Trust, named after her late daughter.
Deputy registrar of the varsity Uma Charan Pati said, Mahapatra donated the amount in memory of her late mother Nirupama Devi who was the daughter of veteran freedom fighter from Sambalpur Bharat Nayak. The fellowship will be named as ‘Nirupama Devi Memorial Research Fellowship’.
“The amount donated by her will be kept in a fixed deposit account and fellowship will be paid out of the interest amount generated from it,” Pati said.The amount was donated in a programme held on the day which was attended by vice-chancellor of the university N Nagaraju, registrar Jugaleswari Dash besides few other officials.
Two other alumni of the institute had reportedly donated Rs 10 lakh each to the varsity under Mo College Abhiyan. While Giridhari Prasad Guru, an alumnus and former principal of GMU had donated on October 6 to provide scholarship to poor students or PhD scholars, another alumnus and former principal of BEd College in Sambalpur Kishori Dash donated for monthly fellowship to a meritorious female PhD scholar of the varsity on October 10.The varsity has received a donation of Rs 40 lakh in the month of October.