FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 15, 2003

Contact: Shekar Narasimhan, Upakar Chair, 703-405-7655

Upakar Announces 2003 Scholars:
Foundation Awards 14 Scholarships to Indian-American Students

District of Columbia – Upakar, a local community-based organization supporting Indian-American higher education, has awarded 14 scholarships for the 2003-2004 academic year. The selected scholars have demonstrated financial need, as well as a commitment to excellence in higher education. Scholarships are $2,000 per year, for each qualifying year spent in a post-secondary institution. In addition to the nine students who have re-qualified for the Upakar Scholarship, five new scholars have been selected to receive assistance this year. (To see the complete listing of scholars, please visit www.upakar.org.)

The five new Upakar scholars are:

Nimisha Bhakta, who is planning to pursue a Sociology degree from the University of California, Berkeley. She is currently in the process of establishing a shelter for battered women.

Fiona Mani, who is starting a B.S. this fall at the University of California, Davis.

Deepa Patel, who goes by the mantra “We must be the change we seek in the world,” is starting a 6-year journey to become a physician at the University of Miami.

Babu Singh, who was chosen as “Teen of the Year” for his community service in Santa Clara and also served as Co-Captain of his soccer team, has been chosen as a research scholar at Cornell University this fall, and is planning a career in Bioengineering, with a minor in English.

Kartik Trehan, who scored a perfect SAT score, is pursuing a PhD in Biotechnology at Johns Hopkins University and is hoping to connect human welfare through bioprocess.

About Upakar

Upakar was founded in 1997 and was created to assist Indian Americans who require additional financial assistance to pursue educational, artistic or athletic goals at a post-secondary institution. It is further dedicated to the promotion and recognition of excellence through the support of the Indian community.

The Indian community in the U.S. is one of the fastest growing immigrant communities, with many of its members being affluent professionals and business owners. However, there is a segment of the population that needs assistance to afford a college education. In the past five years, over 345 applications have been received from across the country and 60 scholarships have been awarded in 16 states for students to attend a variety of private and public colleges and universities.

Applications are available in February; the application deadline is early May with the awards being announced by the end of July. To qualify for a scholarship, the applicant must be a U.S. citizen or U.S. permanent resident and be the descendant of Indian immigrants.

Please visit www.upakar.org to learn more about this worthy cause.