IGNOU B'lore centre logs highest student pass

The regional centre of Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) in Bangalore has secured the distinction of having the highest number of candidates to have passed in the southern region for this year. This was revealed by Dr M S Parthasarathy, Director, Bangalore regional centre, IGNOU, on the sidelines of the 27th convocation of the university here on Wednesday. Also, of the over 140 gold medals handed out to toppers in various programmes and from centres across the country, three were from the regional centre in the City. A total of 5,439 candidates collected their certificates (both in person and in absentia) at the convocation ceremony. "This is the highest number to have passed out from the centre’s history since its inception 17 years ago,” said Dr M S Parthasarathy, director, Bangalore regional centre, IGNOU. The convocation ceremony was held simultaneously across the country. In Delhi, the ceremony was presided by Vice Chancellor M Aslam and Ashok Thakur, Secretary, Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development. Sailaja Pinninty, who has been teaching English at Sri Kumaran School for the past 20 years, bagged a gold medal for her one-year Diploma in Creative Writing. "It was on my daughter’s insistence that I took the course. I have been writing short stories and poetry since my schooldays, but did not take my craft seriously. Now with this gold medal, I cannot give my daughter any excuses,” she said. Besides her daughter, who is studying MSc (psychology) at Central University, Hyderabad, Sailaja’s husband and mother have been a pillar of support, encouraging her every step. The two other gold medalists collected their medals in absentia. They were Girish Kumar M N for his PG Diploma in Information Security, and Supriya Devi Gopinath for her PG Dipolma in Women’s and Gender Studies. Along with three gold medallists, the achievement of Puneeth S Kikkeri, who passed out with BA in English, is also unique in its own way. Puneeth suffered severe brain damage at the age of six after a fall. "He was not able to use his hands and legs and even had problems speaking after the fall. In fact, he was not able to communicate well for a few years,” said Gayathri, Puneeth’s mother. She left her job as a teacher at a college to look after her son. The process of recuperating has been gradual and Puneeth is still confined to a wheelchair. Asked what he wants to do next, Puneeth replies: "I want to stand on my own two feet and be independent. I want to also start working,” he said. Puneeth secured a second division with more than 50 per cent marks.   DHNS