AESL Signs Mega MoUs with Indian Armed Forces to Provide Education Scholarships

Hyderabad: In a major step toward supporting the defense community, Aakash Educational Services Limited (AESL), India’s leading test preparatory services provider, has signed multiple Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with the Indian Army and key paramilitary forces, including the Border Security Force (BSF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP).

This nationwide initiative aims to eliminate financial barriers for the families of defense personnel, providing them with structured scholarships, academic mentoring, career guidance, and access to premium coaching for highly competitive engineering and medical entrance exams. The benefits extend across various categories, specifically prioritizing the families of martyrs, gallantry awardees, and disabled veterans.

“Anyone who has committed themselves to serving their country should have every available opportunity for their family to grow and develop in a way that they can succeed,” said Mr. Chandra Sekhar Garisa Reddy, Managing Director & CEO of AESL. “Through these partnerships, we hope to expand access to quality academic resources and support our defense families in achieving educational success.”

Detailed Breakdown of Scholarship Benefits Across Forces:
The custom scholarship structures designed under these MoUs ensure targeted and comprehensive financial relief for beneficiaries across different forces.

For the Indian Army, the program offers a complete 100% waiver on all fee components (requiring only the registration fee) for the wards of personnel who died in harness. Wards of gallantry awardees or personnel with more than 20% disability receive a 100% tuition fee waiver, while wards of serving and retired personnel are eligible for a 20% tuition fee waiver applied after other scholarships are deducted.

Under the BSF (Border Security Force) agreement, wards of personnel who lost their lives in service receive a 100% waiver on tuition and academic charges, paying only the registration or admission fees. Furthermore, a 90% tuition fee waiver is granted to wards of gallantry awardees or personnel with over 20% disability. Personnel with less than 20% disability receive a 50% waiver, and wards of serving and retired personnel get a 20% tuition fee waiver after adjusting for other eligible scholarships.

For the CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force), wards of personnel who lost their lives on duty are entitled to a 100% waiver on tuition and all academic charges, with only registration or admission fees payable. Personnel with major disabilities receive a full 100% tuition fee waiver. Additionally, a 22% tuition fee waiver is provided to in-service personnel, gallantry awardees, and retired personnel, which applies over and above existing schemes after adjusting for other scholarships.

Finally, the ITBP (Indo-Tibetan Border Police) structure provides a 100% waiver on all course fees (excluding registration and admission fees) for orphans, disabled wards, boarded-out cases, and families of martyrs or those who died in harness. Wards of gallantry award recipients or personnel with more than 20% disability receive a 90% tuition fee waiver. Wards of serving and retired personnel are eligible for a 20% scholarship on tuition fees, which is added on top of any merit-based scholarships achieved by the student.

Beyond Financial Aid: Additional Support Initiatives:
These new welfare scholarships will operate alongside AESL’s standard merit-based programs across its entire PAN-India network. Beyond financial waivers, the MoUs guarantee comprehensive academic handholding, including:

Holistic Mentoring: Both virtual and offline academic mentoring and career counseling sessions.

Talent Identification: Streamlined access to national-level scholarship exams, including the Aakash National Talent Hunt Exam (ANTHE).

Infrastructure Access: Utilization of AESL centers and defense school facilities for regular testing and assessments.

Long-Term Engagement: Dedicated tracking programs to ensure continuous academic support throughout the student’s learning journey.