BITS Pilani Receives USD 1 Million Endowment From Alumnus For Female Scholarships, Innovation

BITS Pilani has received a significant USD 1 million endowment from alumnus Brij Bhushan, the founder of Reston Consulting Group (RCG) and a member of BITS Pilani’s first 1960 batch. He established the fund

to support female students and encourage innovative, faculty-led solutions for real-world challenges.

After a successful 24-year career in the US telecommunications corporate sector, Bhushan founded RCG in 1987. His firm provides network operations and maintenance, cybersecurity, enterprise architecture, IT support, and telecommunications services to US government and commercial clients.

Bhushan and his wife Champa, also a BITSian with a Master’s in Electrical Engineering (1966), have been active in the Washington DC alumni community since 1980, the institute stated in an official press release. After retiring from RCG, the couple taught for one semester at BITS Pilani’s Pilani campus in 2006.

Prof. V. Ramgopal Rao, Vice-Chancellor of BITS Pilani, expressed gratitude for the generous endowment, stating, “Prof. Brij Bhushan and Champa Bhushan have been sincere supporters of BITS Pilani. They have not only established this significant scholarship but also shared their valuable expertise by teaching on campus. Both Brij and Champa Bhushan have witnessed BITS’ transformation over the years, and we are deeply moved by their faith in BITS’ ethos and mission.”

Prof. Brij Bhushan remarked, “When we left Pilani to pursue higher education abroad, our dream was to contribute to BITS Pilani’s growth in any way we could for student welfare. With this endowment, we have fulfilled that lifelong dream.”

This is not Bhushan’s first philanthropic act at BITS. Alongside his wife, Champa Bhushan, they established two MCN scholarships at BITS in 2009, which continue to this day. The additional USD 1 million will further support meritorious students from low-income backgrounds and encourage students to devise innovative solutions to challenging problems, the institute stated.

Prof. Arya Kumar expressed gratitude to Prof. Brij Bhushan and his family, acknowledging their multiple contributions to the growth of their alma mater and their advocacy of alumni community giving, as is customary in the West.