Activities within the grant and expected impact:
The grant is towards supporting the UPIASI and the Asian Scholarship Foundation (ASF) in its ASIA programme. The Trusts are supporting five scholars annually, over three years, out of the 30 annually selected by the ASF.

These fifteen scholars will be either academics from India conducting advanced research in other parts of Asia, or Asian scholars coming into India to conduct research. Its focus will be twofold:

	To generate quality research on and in India, bringing a major India focus to Asian social science research
	To cement long-term institutional links among academic institutions across Asia, hosting Trust-supported researchers and generating long-term research collaborations.

Notably, and in sync with the Trusts' current grant making priorities, the programme also dedicates two out of the five fellowships exclusively to scholars working on issues of comparative education. The primary objectives of the ASIA fellowships are therefore:

	To strengthen regional capacity to produce scholarly research on Asian societies
	To create a network of Asian specialists in Asia
	To develop a regional perspective among scholars working in the field of Asian studies

The present programme is expected to demonstrate its impact in enhancement of research on Indian interest in Asia, in the following areas:

Direct policy implications of Asia-based research in various aspects of the social sciences, including trade and investment relations’ studies, political and security relations’ studies, migration studies, and cultural studies. Approximately 15 Research Centres and university departments in Asia, of which five will be from India, representing a collective student body of 15,000 students, will directly benefit from incorporating the curriculum of Asian economic and cultural interests.

Specific focus on comparative education, wherein the programme will enhance studies of the Indian system through comparison with innovative work being done in Asian countries, in introducing larger civil society actors into the domain of higher education. At least six Fellows, over three years, will conduct fundamental research into new strategies of educational programming and dissemination in East and South East Asia. Asian experts will study alternative structures that are being experimented with inside India, for disseminating social science research curricula.