Asian Agri-History Foundation Research Fellowship (M.Sc. Agriculture - All Disciplines)

What is the Asian Agri-History Foundation Research Fellowship?

Asian Agri-History Foundation Research Fellowship (M.Sc. Agriculture - All Disciplines) is a fellowship administered by Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology (GBPUAT), Pantnagar, which functions under the Department of Agriculture, Government of Uttarakhand. The fellowship provides financial support to meritorious students pursuing a Master of Science in Agriculture.

According to the scheme details on the myScheme portal, the fellowship pays Rs 1,200 per month and is awarded for one year. It is a merit-based fellowship, open to students across all disciplines of M.Sc. Agriculture at the university. The fellowship is linked to the Asian Agri-History Foundation, an organisation that promotes the study and documentation of agricultural heritage, and it is administered through GBPUAT.

GBPUAT, set up in 1960 at Pantnagar in Udham Singh Nagar district, was India's first agricultural university and remains a leading centre for agricultural education and research. This fellowship is one of several endowment-supported awards the university uses to recognise and support able postgraduate students. The Asian Agri-History Foundation, based in Secunderabad, is a not-for-profit trust that documents and promotes the history of agriculture in South and South-East Asia; the fellowship carrying its name links a Pantnagar postgraduate's work to that wider tradition of agricultural scholarship.

The fellowship is small in money terms but selective in nature. Rs 1,200 a month is a token endowment stipend rather than a full research grant, so it sits alongside, not in place of. The ICAR Junior Research Fellowship and other university assistantships a Pantnagar M.Sc. student may hold. Its value is as much in the recognition of merit as in the monthly amount.

Who is eligible for the fellowship?

You can apply if:

• You are a student pursuing an M.Sc. in Agriculture at GBPUAT Pantnagar.
• You are enrolled in any discipline of the M.Sc. Agriculture programme.
• You have a strong academic merit record, since selection is merit-based.

You cannot apply / are not eligible if:

• You are not enrolled in the M.Sc. Agriculture programme at GBPUAT Pantnagar.
• You are studying at another university or in a non-agriculture programme.
• You cannot meet the merit standard the selection committee applies.

The fellowship is limited to GBPUAT's own M.Sc. Agriculture students. It is not a general public scholarship and there is no separate income test mentioned; the deciding factor is academic merit.

What documents are required?

Keep self-attested copies of your marksheets and admission proof ready, since merit records are central to the selection.

How to apply for the fellowship

1. Watch for the university notification. GBPUAT notifies the application format and the window. Check with the College of Agriculture and the concerned department.
2. Fill in the prescribed form. Complete the application in the format notified by the university, giving your admission and academic details.
3. Attach merit and admission records. Include your marksheets, proof of admission to the M.Sc. Agriculture programme and bank account details.
4. Submit to the university. Hand in the application to the office notified by GBPUAT for the fellowship.
5. Await selection. A selection committee constituted by the university evaluates applications on merit and selects the fellow.

How is the fellow selected, and how is money paid?

Selection is based on academic merit. According to the scheme's published procedure, students are first invited to submit applications on the prescribed form, after which a committee constituted by the Vice-Chancellor reviews and evaluates them under a defined procedure and recommends the most deserving M.Sc. Agriculture student. Once selected, the student receives Rs 1,200 per month for one year, credited to the bank account provided. Because the fellowship runs for a fixed one-year term, students should confirm the start date and payment schedule with the university at the time of selection.

There is no separate income test, no domicile condition and no reservation quota published for this fellowship, the single deciding factor is the academic record judged by the Vice-Chancellor's committee. A student who does not top the merit list in one cycle can be considered again in a later cycle while still enrolled in an eligible year.

How do I check my application status?

There is no online status portal for this internal university fellowship. To find where your application stands, contact the office at GBPUAT where you submitted the prescribed form — usually the College of Agriculture or the concerned department, and quote the date you applied. Keep a self-attested copy of the form and any acknowledgement so you can follow up. Because the award list is decided by a committee, results are notified through the university rather than by individual letters, so watch the College of Agriculture notice board and the Student Corner on gbpuat.ac.in.

Common reasons an application is set aside

• Not enrolled in M.Sc. Agriculture at GBPUAT, the fellowship is limited to the university's own students in that programme.
• Lower merit rank than other applicants in the same cycle, since only one deserving student is selected.
• Incomplete form or missing marksheets, which can lead to rejection at the screening stage.
• Application submitted after the notified window the university announces for the cycle.

Correcting a documentation gap and applying again in the next cycle is the usual fix where a student remains eligible.

Key facts to remember

• Benefit: Rs 1,200 per month, for one year.
• Eligibility: M.Sc. Agriculture students at GBPUAT Pantnagar, any discipline.
• Selection: merit-based, by a university committee.
• Mode: offline, in the university's prescribed form.

Why does this fellowship matter for students?

For a postgraduate student of agriculture, a monthly fellowship of Rs 1,200 over a year is a modest but useful support that helps meet study and research costs. Just as important, being selected on merit for the Asian Agri-History Foundation Research Fellowship is a recognition that adds weight to a student's academic record. The Asian Agri-History Foundation promotes the study of agricultural heritage and knowledge, and its association with the fellowship links a student's postgraduate work to that wider tradition. Because the fellowship is open to all M.Sc. Agriculture disciplines and decided on merit, students across the university's agriculture departments can compete for it, and the deciding factor is the strength of their academic record.

What should applicants keep ready?

Because the fellowship is decided on merit and administered internally, the single most important thing an applicant controls is the strength and completeness of the academic record placed before the committee. Keep self-attested copies of every semester marksheet, the proof of current admission to the M.Sc. Agriculture programme, and correct bank-account details for the monthly credit. A student who misses a cycle can be considered in a later one while still enrolled, so it is worth reapplying if the merit position improves. There is no application fee for this university award, and no agent or intermediary can "arrange" the fellowship: selection is entirely on the committee's assessment of merit.

Help and where to ask

For the current application form, the submission window and payment details, contact the College of Agriculture, GBPUAT Pantnagar, or the concerned department office, or refer to the university website at gbpuat.ac.in and its Student Corner and academics sections where fellowship notices are published. Since the fellowship is merit-based and limited to the university's own M.Sc. Agriculture students, keep your academic records in order before applying, and confirm the exact form and deadline directly with the university each academic year, as internal award rules can be revised.