BITS Pilani Crosses USD 54 Million in Endowment Drive as Annual Alumni Giving Hits Record Rs 82 Crore

BITS Pilani has raised USD 54 million through its endowment drive in just 23 months, moving past the halfway mark of its USD 100 million goal according to group Vice Chancellor V Ramgopal Rao.

Giving and Support

Annual alumni giving reached a record Rs 82 crore in the financial year 2025 to 2026, marking a 43 per cent increase over the previous year and nearly 90 times the level seen when the Alumni Relations Office was set up in the financial year 2017 to 2018. More than 24 individual alumni and alumni batches have each pledged USD one million or more. Cumulative alumni contributions of Rs 256 crore have backed initiatives across campuses, with support coming from founders, CEOs, scientists, reunion batches and alumni-led companies globally.

Campus Initiatives

The funds have helped establish six new research centres across the Pilani, Goa and Hyderabad campuses focusing on artificial intelligence, semiconductors, clean energy, social and rural innovation, smart electronics manufacturing and advanced materials, while two more centres in space technologies and AI diagnostics are currently being set up. Over 300 scholarships are supported by alumni and corporate contributions, including 188 given to female students over the past two years, alongside 25 PhD scholars receiving support such as 11 through the PhD DRIVE fellowship which provides a monthly stipend of Rs 60,000. Five endowed chair professorships have also been set up, together with awards for teaching and research excellence, including honours for women faculty.

Context

Educational institutions in India increasingly rely on structured alumni fundraising drives to expand their research facilities, upgrade campus laboratories and fund student scholarships without depending solely on government grants or tuition fees. Endowments of this scale allow universities to build long-term financial security and compete globally in advanced technology research.