NEW DELHI: Around 400 Indian students have been awarded EU-funded scholarships this year, an increase of 15% over last year that demonstrates the excellence of desi pupils in the worldwide competition process.

At least 73 of them are flying to Europe this semester for the Erasmus Mundus joint master’s programme, a statement from the EU said.

India is the largest beneficiary of Erasmus financing for higher education outside Europe with its nationals bagging 5,700 scholarships in the last three decades. The Erasmus programme not only gives scholarships to Indian students but also supports Indian universities in a variety of programmes.

Tomasz Kozlowski, ambassador of the EU to India, who met some of these students last Wednesday, said, “Indian students have consistently been among the top beneficiaries of this scholarship. Since 2014, close to 330 Indian higher education institutes have become a part of the programme and there is interest to further expand education collaborations.”

Under the capacity-building programme for higher education, 6.8 million euros (Rs 55 crore) have been committed this year for Indian universities.

