Bhubaneswar: Students interested in philately will shortly receive scholarships from the state government.

The state postal circle will select a maximum of 40 scholarships representing 10 students each from classes VI to IX. The amount of scholarship will be Rs 500 a month.

The scheme will run under the Deen Dayal Sparsh Yojana to increase the reach of philately. A philately club will be hosted at every school in the state and will be run by a mentor. Interested students will be made members of the club.

The state government will form a committee to look after the project. To avail this scholarship, a child must be a student of a recognised school within India and the school concerned should have a philately club and the candidate should be a member.

Students will be selected by the state postal circle through a competitive selection. Every school that takes part will be assigned a mentor to be chosen from among renowned philatelists. The mentor will guide young aspiring philatelists on how to pursue the hobby and help them on their projects.

Selections under the scheme will be made based on the evaluation of project work on philately and performance in quiz conducted by the state postal circle.

"The hobby of collecting stamps includes seeking, locating, acquiring, organising, cataloguing, displaying, storing, and maintaining stamps or related products on thematic areas," said culture minister Ashok Panda.