www.scholarships.net.in

Organisation : Speaker’s Research Initiative & Lok Sabha Secretariat
Scholarship Name : Lok Sabha Research Fellowships Scheme 2018-19
Application Last Date : 10th January 2018
Website : http://164.100.47.194/loksabha/PPR/PPRCommon.aspx?Param=Fellowship_Committee.htm & http://loksabha.nic.in/
Notification : https://www.scholarships.net.in/uploads/20280-Note.pdf
Guidelines : https://www.scholarships.net.in/uploads/20280-Guide.pdf

SRI Lok Sabha Research Fellowships

The Parliament of India is the highest deliberative body and supreme representative institution of the largest working democracy in the world. It is in its Chambers that the destiny of a nation of a billion plus people is shaped.

Related : Lok Sabha Research Fellowships Scheme 2016 : www.scholarships.net.in/9793.html

Members of the two Houses of Parliament have many procedural devices to articulate the concerns and considerations of the people, to keep the Executive accountable at all times and to closely monitor the policies and programmes for national welfare. Since independence, the institution of Parliament has carved out a special place for itself in the hearts and minds of our people.

Fellowships For Writing Books

The Lok Sabha Secretariat will grant twenty-five Research Fellowships every year, on any subject having relevance or connection with the Parliament or Parliamentary democracy.

Duration

The duration of the Fellowships will be of two years with no further extension to be granted in this regard.

Eligibility

(i) The scholar should not be less than 25 and more than 70 years of age on the last date of application.
(ii) The scholar must posses a Master degree in any of the social science disciplines with outstanding research publications at the time of application.
(iii) The scholar must be a person with an outstanding academic record in any discipline relevant to parliamentary studies or should be an expert in her/his own domain.

Selection Procedure

(i) The selection for the grant of Research Fellowships will be made by a Fellowship Committee.
(ii) An advertisement will be issued in major national dailies in Hindi, English and regional languages announcing the Fellowships.
(iii) The Fellowship Committee may also suo motu consider meritorious scholars for the Fellowship.
(iv) The applicant will be required to send in his/her particulars in the prescribed format (Annexure), duly filled-in, along with a Synopsis of 1000 words of his/her proposal.
(v) Applications are initially scrutinized by the Lok Sabha Secretariat (SRI Cell).
(vi) Thereafter, Fellowship Committee will shortlist the meritorious proposals from the eligible applications.
(vii) Such applicants would then be invited for an interaction/presentation before the Fellowship Committee.
(viii) The Fellowship Committee shall consider and recommend the names to the Hon’ble Speaker, Lok Sabha, for the grant of Lok Sabha Fellowships.
(ix) If the Fellowship Committee does not find any applicant suitable for the grant of the Fellowship, no Fellowship may be granted during that year. The Committee may, however, consider awarding the Fellowship for that particular year in the next year, subject to the availability of funds.
(vii) A Fellow has to submit quarterly Progress Report of the Fellowship project for the consideration and satisfaction of the Fellowship Committee. The final Report shall be submitted in triplicate for the appraisal and perusal of the Fellowship Committee.

Proposals Submission Guidelines

While submitting the proposal, the format may broadly be according to the following order of points and conform to the guidelines given under:

(a) Title of the Project
(b) Statement of the Problem: In the opening paragraphs of the research proposal, the problem to be investigated should be stated clearly and briefly. The significance of the problem in the theoretical context of the discipline concerned should be specified.
(c) Overview of Literature: Summarizing the current status of research in the area, including major findings, the project proposal should clearly demonstrate the relevance of the findings or approaches for the investigation of the problem at hand.
(d) Conceptual Framework: Given the problem and the theoretical perspective for investigation of the problem, the proposal should clearly indicate the concepts to be used and demonstrate their relevance for the study. It should further specify the empirical dimension, if any, that needs to be explored for investigating the problem.
(e) Research Questions/Hypotheses: Given the conceptual framework and dimensions of the problem, specific questions to be answered and hypotheses to be tested through the proposed study should be explicitly formulated, compatible with the research design.
(f) Coverage: In the light of the questions raised or the hypotheses proposed to be tested, if sampling becomes necessary, full information on the following points should be given:

(i) Universe of the Study, (ii) Sampling Frame, and (iii) Units of Observation and Sampling size.
(i) If the study requires any control groups, they should be specifically mentioned. An explanation of the determination of size and type of the sample shall also be necessary. Proposals not requiring a sample selection should specify their strategy appropriately and describe the rationale.
(ii) Methodology: A suitable description of the methods of research for the study may be given.
(iii) Data Collection: The different types of data that are proposed to be gathered should be specifically mentioned. The sources for each type and the tools and techniques that will be used for collecting different types of data should also be specified.
(iv) Time Budgeting: The project should be broken up in suitable stages and the time required for the completion of each stage of work should be specified.
(v) Bibliography

Amount of Fellowship

The total amount of each Fellowship for writing Books will be a maximum of Rs.10 lakh (Rupees Ten lakh only), plus Rs. 50,000/- (Rupees Fifty thousand only) as contingency allowance.

The contingency allowance may be utilized for meeting costs such as purchase of books, journals, stationeries, photocopying, typing, travel expenses and related expenditures. The amount sanctioned to a Fellow will be disbursed in instalments, subject to the satisfactory progress of the project and recommendation of the Fellowship Committee to that effect.