Hyderabad: Sorry, no gold for topper in Genetics

Hyderabad: Hyderabad is the world’s vaccine capital. Adding to the city’s profile is Genome Valley, “the country’s first organised cluster for Life Sciences R&D and clean manufacturing activities, with world-class infrastructure facilities,” says the state government’s industries department to boost the brand Hyderabad.

Not lagging behind, scores of realtors woo the investors to sell their properties in the name of Genome Vally. Despite all this high decibel campaign and projection, “it does not have Rs 5 lakh to recognise talent in Genetics at the 100-year-old Osmania University,” rued a faculty member.

According to the university sources, the university is all set to hold its 83rd convocation on October 31, for the academic year 2021-22.

Speaking to The Hans India, a university official said that in all, 57 top rankers will be awarded gold medals during the convocation. However, there is no gold medal for the students who top in the M.Sc Genetics and few other courses.

The reason all gold medals awarded from Rs 5 lakh donated as an endowment by the donors. “The university does not have funds to recognise its students, as it not getting funds from the State government to establish endowments from its funds. So, it has to depend only on the donors for the establishment of the gold medals and similar awards to recognise the talent of its students who topped in their respective fields,” added another contract faculty member.

Against this backdrop, Vishnu Vachana Murapaka, an MSc student of the Department of Genetics and Biotechnology, Osmania University, in an email to the State Governor and Chancellor of the university said that she secured 8.75 CGPA on a scale of 10 and passed first division with distinction in the year 2002. She was a topper of the university in the subject. Expressing her anguish to the chancellor, she said, “I felt very privileged to be the topper of such a prestigious

university. However, I felt very sad after knowing that there are no gold medals assigned to university toppers from The Department of Genetics and Biotechnology, where other departments like Organic Chemistry, Physics, Zoology, Botany, Microbiology, and many more do.”

What turns more interesting was she asked the Chancellor, whether it was her fault studying in a department that could not get donors for gold medal?”

Furthermore, toppers like Vishnu Vachana, whose departments do not have donors and no gold medals feel outcast and not allowed entry into the convocation hall, where their counterparts receive gold medals.

The OU sources said the convocation entry is open only for PhD and gold medalists.