Support The Advancement of Rural Students (STARS), the scheme envisaged by Vellore Institute of Technology has provided them with both education and good qualities, former students who studied under the programme said on Sunday.

Each year, former beneficiaries of the STARS scheme, gather along with their families on the occasion of STARS Day. Interacting with the current batch of students, they said it was high time that students made use of the facilities in the campus to secure a degree and merit certificate.

A new recruit from the Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue Services and a 2011 batch student, Kavitha said joining VIT was a turning point in her life and the institution not only ensured education, but also provided a secure life for many students, who have been selected under the scheme.

Another pass-out, Bhuvaneswari, an employee of Cognizant Technologies, said the institution gave her a positive outlook and one should not forget the inspirational teachers at VIT.

Donations to UHET

STARS Alumni Association donated ₹1.30 lakh to the Universal Higher Education Trust (UHET), which provides scholarships to poor rural students for their higher education.

Likewise, headmasters of schools in Vellore district contributed ₹50,000 to the trust. The cheques were handed over to VIT Chancellor G. Viswanathan.

According to the release, STARS is an initiative which aims to provide opportunities to the underprivileged rural students to pursue higher education. Every year since its inception in 2008, 62 students have been chosen from rural Tamil Nadu, each one a topper in the higher secondary examinations conducted by the State in their respective districts.

Additional Chief Secretary and Director, Anna Institute of Management, Chennai, V. Irai Anbu said the beneficiaries should inspire people to pursue education which was the only thing that could bring about change in the society and added that they have to develop “truthfulness, purity and integrity” while growing up in life, he said.

Mr. Viswanathan said 586 out of the 659 STARS beneficiaries were first generation graduates. He appealed to the State’s elected representatives to aid school infrastructure through local area development funds. While private institutes do their part with schemes such as STARS, government agencies should also pull their weight and support rural students from poor backgrounds, he added.

Vellore Chief Educational Officer S. Mars, Registrar K. Sathiyanarayanan, VIT vice-president Sankar Viswananthan, pro-vice-chancellor S. Narayanan, convenor S. Meenakshi and director students affairs Mahindrakar Amit Baburao were present on the occasion.