Scholarship & Relief 2022-23

This year, like the last, we have 3 scholarships available. The value of each award will be determined according to need. The financial crisis in Pakistan and the scourge of inflation worldwide has placed many in a dire situation. Hence, venturing for the first time outside education, we have managed to establish a poverty relief subsidy for two families and intend to do more.

Several new situations have emerged in the world since 2019. The repercussions from these events are likely to last many years. The economic circumstances – resulting from the pandemic, the war in Ukraine and the runaway inflation – have made most people feel like they are poorer today than they were a few years ago. Irrespective of our political views, we need to find a way to deal with this triple-crisis and, if possible, to help each other along the way.

The man who inspired the modest effort this website represents, Mian Fazle Raheem, may have some clues for us in the way he lived his life. One of the principles that allowed him to help others was the ability to get by with very little for himself. This is in sharp contrast to how governments and individuals around the world have dealt with the triple-crisis. It seems we have all thrown money at the situation as if it were the panacea. This over-spending by borrowing, along with the supply chains disrupted by the pandemic as well as the food and energy shortages sparked by the war, has led to inflation. We have deeply indebted the future generations to provide temporary relief for ourselves today. A most temporary relief indeed because the more money we throw at it the more the prices keep rising and the less we feel we can buy. Austerity and belt-tightening are terms our governments fear and we loathe. We’re encouraged to want and spend more so that the holy spirit of growth may find solace and we can feel richer and vote for the incumbents. No modern government expects to be re-elected if it speaks of fiscal responsibility.

And yet that is exactly how Mian Sahib dealt with the many crises he and his loved ones faced: Streamline expenses, meet needs not wants. The desire to increase one’s income is natural but it makes us walk a tight-rope across the raging river of greed. The desire for more is complicating our survival on this planet in more ways than just pandemics and wars. First we dug up the earth to get oil and gas, now we’re digging it up to make batteries. In the process, we’re getting fatter and our eco-system is running thin. Most of us are healthy and can easily meet most of our daily transportation needs on a bicycle, but that’s no good for the growth economy. A bicycle doesn’t use gasoline or electricity or a billion parts imported on a thousand ships. Yet, it does keep us fit and eliminates all those emissions. These are some of the thoughts that derive from contemplating a life as simple and robust as Mian Sahib’s. Not that he was a cyclist, but that he got by on little, simple things when he could afford a lot more.

Scholarship Awards 2021-22

This year we are aiming to help a total of 3 students achieve their academic goals. We have renewed one scholarship from last year and therefore have two new scholarships available. The value of each scholarship is Rs. 10,000 per month or Rs. 120,000 per year.

COVID-19 has placed all of us in a difficult new situation and it is an adjustment for everyone. However, it has also given us an opportunity to dig deep into our reserves of resilience and intelligence to do our best as human beings – not only for ourselves and our families but for everyone we know. This is not the time to bundle up and wallow in self-pity or to focus too intently on ourselves. It’s time to look out for all and sundry. If you know anyone who needs help in pursuing their education, please ask them to contact us through this website.



Scholarship Awards 2020-21

This year we aimed to help 3 students achieve their academic goals, but have found only one eligible applicant. We therefore still have funding for two more scholars. The student we are supporting is being funded for Rs. 96,000 with scholarship grants for the next one year and an additional Rs. 102,000 in loans.

COVID-19 has placed all of us in a difficult new situation and it is an adjustment for everyone. However, it has also given us an opportunity to dig deep into our reserves of resilience and intelligence to do our best as human beings – not only for ourselves and our families but for everyone we know. This is not the time to bundle up and wallow in self-pity or to focus too intently on ourselves. It’s time to look out for all and sundry. If you know anyone who needs help in pursuing their education, please ask them to contact us through this website.

Scholarship Awards 2019-2020

In our 8th year of operation, we’re helping two students who expect to graduate in 2019. We still have funding for one more student this year and as our current Scholars graduate we should be able to support two additional applicants.

We no longer run a campaign for acquiring applicants because we simply don’t have the staff to complete the process at a high level of competence and fairness. Hence we rely on word-of-mouth of the students we have helped in the past and teachers or administrators who have previously helped us find applicants.

In this context, we urge all FURTHER Scholars, to please spread the word-of-mouth for us. Tell people at your work places, mention us in your CV, and generally remember us in any conversation that touches on the subject of education or financial support. Thank you.

Scholarship Awards 2018-2019

As we mark the 7th Anniversary of this scholarship programme, we have one FURTHER Scholar graduating in May 2019 from Khyber Medical College and two additional scholarships for PKR 100,000 each still available for this year. We have not called for direct applications this year because of extremely limited staff time. Instead, The FAST-NU Islamabad Campus has promised to send us by November the details of their students in need. FAST-NU has an excellent financial aid programme with a robust system for identifying deserving students. Based on their analysis, we will select two more FURTHER Scholars in November for the academic year 2018-2019.

Once again, at this sombre time of the year when we remember a gentleman who made this world a better place, we wish all FURTHER Scholars a great year ahead. Being able to offer three scholarships this year is better than what we may have thought a couple of years ago. We still don’t have any outside donations and no past FURTHER Scholar has as yet contributed to funding. However, we have survived and will continue to do so indefinitely because we are inspired by the memory of a kind human being.