There has been a growing trend of Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) who prefer to pursue higher education from India. Many factors such as the globally acclaimed Indian education in Science and Technology, Medicine and Engineering at affordable fees attract NRIs to the country. The lower cost of living is another reason that drives NRIs here.
The government has introduced scholarship programme for Diaspora Children (SPDC) in 2006-07 to make higher education, in Indian universities/institutes in different fields (except medical and related courses) accessible to the children of Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) and Non-resident Indians (NRIs).
Ministry offered 150 scholarship every year under the scheme, out of which, 50 are reserved for PIOs, 50 for NRIs and 50 are reserved for Children of Indian workers in ECR countries (Afghanistan, Bahrain, Indonesia, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and Yemen). The SPDC scheme is applicable in selected 69 countries.
Under the Scheme, students are awarded scholarship up to US$ 4,000 per annum towards payment of tuition fee, hostel fee, admission fee and other fee except food charges for undergraduate courses in Engineering, Technology, Humanities, Liberal, Arts, Commerce, Management, Journalism, Hotel Management, Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and some other courses.
Many universities such as the National Council For Hotel Management And Catering Technology offer direct admission for foreign nationals, NRIs and PIOs. Several other universities such as Vels university, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham also offer courses to such students.