Bengaluru: For Swathimuttu, who bagged five gold medals at the 19th convocation of the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS), it was a struggle against imposing odds.

“When I joined Pre-University science stream after SSLC, I found it very difficult to cope with the syllabus. Since I had studied in Kannada medium till SSLC, I found it difficult to cope with English medium in Pre-University. “I wanted to switch over to arts or commerce, fearing I may not able to do well in science. But my parents and teachers persuaded me not to give up, and the rest is history,” she said.

Swathimuttu, who had joined SDM Ayurveda College, Hassan, after her Pre-University course, wants to pursue post-graduation in gynaecology.“My parents were farmers from Chitradurga. They supported by education through bank loans. I want to work in rural areas to ensure that everyone gets quality heathcare,” she said.

Swamthimuttu’s father Nanjundappa and mother Girijamma are the residents of Tondekere village Chitraduraga. Both had turned up for the convocation to see their daughter being felicitated.

Nanjundappa said that he owns five acres of dry agricultural land.“We have 500 arecanut and 100 coconut trees. We have availed loan of `2 lakh for our daughter’s studies,” he said.

Deepthi Agarwal, a student of JJM Medical College, Davanagere, also secured five gold medals and a cash award. A total of 103 gold medals and nine cash awards were distributed to 69 students. Among the gold medal winners, 48 are girls while 21 are boys.

Cardiologist Govindaraj Subramani and Dr Kutpadi Govinddas were honoured with honorary doctorate degrees.A total number of 26,698 students were given degree certificates during the annual convocation.

Make good healthcare affordable: Expert
Prof Sharat Chandra, Director, Centre for Human Genetics, has urged the governments, doctors and hospitals to work towards providing quality health care to all at affordable rates.

In his address at the 19th convocation of the RGUHS, Prof Chandra lamented that the contribution of heath sector to the GDP was very low. "Mortality rate among the children, high cost of hospitalization and other issues must be addressed to ensure that everyone gets quality healthcare,” he said.
He also urged the students to engage in the research and developmental activities to ensure that whatever is taught in the classroom reaches the needy.
He also requested the colleges and universities to improve research activities in the campus.