IIT Ropar Launches Fully Funded Scholarships as It Moves to Institutionalise Yogi Sciences on Campus

The Indian Institute of Technology Ropar has announced a fully funded scholarship scheme for students from underprivileged backgrounds, alongside the laying of a foundation stone for a new centre dedicated to yogic sciences and holistic development. The twin announcements were made during a ceremony on campus this week.

The scholarship programme, named the Dr Ishan Shivanand Scholarship for Gifted Youth, will support ten students every year. Five awards are earmarked for undergraduate students and five for postgraduates. Institute officials said the initiative is meant to ensure that financial hardship does not impede academic progress for talented students.

Speaking at the event, IIT Ropar director Rajeev Ahuja framed the scholarships as part of the institute’s commitment to social responsibility and academic equity. According to him, the fully funded nature of the support is intended to allow students from economically weaker backgrounds to focus on their studies without the burden of financial stress.

At the same ceremony, the institute laid the foundation stone for the Dr Ishan Avdhoot Shivanand Centre for Yogic Sciences and Holistic Development. The centre, named after the founder of Yoga of Immortals, is expected to integrate traditional yogic practices with what the institute described as modern scientific approaches to well being.

Plans for the centre include facilities for yoga, meditation, mindfulness and other wellness related activities. Daily yoga sessions, stress management programmes, faculty wellness initiatives and research into holistic health practices are projected as core components of its work. Ahuja emphasised the importance of mental and physical well being in what he described as an increasingly demanding academic environment.

Dr Ishan Shivanand, after whom both the scholarships and the centre are named, argued that scientifically validated yogic practices could play a role in addressing stress, anxiety and burnout among students, while remaining compatible with academic rigour.

The event was also attended by senior faculty members, including representatives from biomedical engineering and clinical medicine, highlighting the institute’s stated intent to give the centre an interdisciplinary character.

While the scholarship scheme is likely to be welcomed by students facing financial constraints, the coupling of financial aid with the institutionalisation of yogic and spiritual frameworks on a premier technical campus raises broader questions. These include how public institutions balance welfare initiatives with their core academic mandates, and how concepts of wellness are framed and legitimised within spaces traditionally defined by scientific and technological inquiry.