Hyderabad: Akhila Bandam became the only one from Telangana to secure the prestigious Chevening scholarship to complete her masters in the UK, from among one lakh applicants from 140 countries who had applied for it this year.
She will be pursuing Climate Change and Sustainability Policy at the University College of London, and is flying there on Monday, September 15.
What the Chevening scholarship offers
Chevening scholarships enable outstanding emerging leaders to solve pressing local, national, or global challenges. The scholarship is annually given by the UK government to 1,000 candidates across the world by fully funding their master’s program in the UK.
From India, 54 students have been selected for the Chevening scholarships for the year 2025-26.
Policy opportunity for Telangana, AP
There could have been more from the state that could have availed the one-year fully-sponsored education, if the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh government had entered into an arrangement with the British High Commission, like Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Karnataka, where 5 students will be selected from these states every year.
The education portfolio is presently with chief minister A Revanth Reddy in Telangana, and Nara Lokesh in AP.
Role of the British Deputy High Commissioner
Gareth Wynn Owen has been serving as the British Deputy High Commissioner of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana since 2022. As the Deputy High Commissioner, his role includes promoting business and trade links, strengthening scientific and education cooperation and working with partners to tackle climate change and ensure a transition to clean and sustainable growth.
Akhila’s focus
For instance, Akhila will be focusing her research on climate change and agricultural systems. She aims to influence the policies of political parties to fall in line with the global need to address these issues. She believes that every political party should include adaptation and mitigation measures towards climate change in their manifestos, which is not happening presently.
An animal rights activist by nature, Akhila has also delved into the agri-processing industry abroad and in India. She gained experience in political campaign management and has seen the corridors of power closely. She is one of those who believe that change can happen by influencing the political parties to take up climate change as an important campaign issue. After returning from the UK, she aims to work on that.
Scope for more scholars from Telangana, AP
There are many like her who can avail the Chevening scholarship from the Telugu states with a preferential entry system, if the governments of AP and Telangana take a step and speak with the British Deputy High Commissioner, enter into a memorandum of association to enable at least 5 students from these two states to get the scholarships every year.
Applications for next year
Presently, applications are open for Chevening scholarships and fellowships for the year 2026-27 till October 7. Interested candidates can visit https://www.chevening.org/ for more information.
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