Sat May 17 19:14:59 UTC 2025: Here’s a summary of the provided text, followed by a news article re-write:

**Summary:**

An event called STARS Day 2025, organized by the Universal Higher Education Trust of VIT, took place at Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT). G. Viswanathan, VIT’s founder and chancellor, emphasized the need for increased government spending on education at both the central and state levels. He highlighted that India’s current education spending (2.5% of GDP) is insufficient and lags behind countries like China. He also noted that only 28% of India’s population pursues higher education, compared to over 60% in China. The event also celebrated the STARS scheme, which has benefitted over 1,000 students in Tamil Nadu with around ₹90 crore disbursed since 2008. Actor Karthi and director T.J. Gnanavel were present at the event.

**News Article:**

**VIT Chancellor Calls for Increased Education Spending at STARS Day Event**

*Vellore, May 18, 2025* – Speaking at the STARS Day 2025 event at Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) on Saturday, G. Viswanathan, founder and chancellor of VIT, urged both the Central and State governments to significantly increase investment in education.

Viswanathan emphasized that inadequate funding hinders access to higher education, particularly for students from rural areas. He pointed out that the 2025-26 Union Budget allocated only 2.5% of GDP to education, far short of the long-standing demand of 6%.

“Only around 28% of India’s total population pursue higher education, as against over 60% in China,” Viswanathan stated, highlighting the disparity in educational attainment. He attributed India’s economic lag behind China, despite being ahead in 1990, to insufficient educational investment.

The STARS (Support The Advancement of Rural Students) scheme, organized by Universal Higher Education Trust of VIT, aims to address this gap. Since its inception in 2008, the scheme has disbursed approximately ₹90 crore, benefitting 1,014 students in Tamil Nadu.

The VIT STARS magazine was released at the event in the presence of actor Karthi, director T.J. Gnanavel, and VIT vice-presidents Sankar Viswanathan and Sekar Viswanathan.

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