Women accounted for 29 of the 38 gold medal recipients: Reports
HYDERABAD: Rajahmundry Central Jail inmate Nukapeyyi Suresh won a gold medal and a book prize as Dr B.R. Ambedkar Open University (BRAOU) awarded degrees and certificates to 36,145 students at its 27th convocation on Wednesday. The ceremony also saw 38 gold medals presented, degrees awarded to 27 prison inmates and an honorary doctorate conferred on filmmaker, poet and actor B. Narsing Rao.
Governor and BRAOU Chancellor Shiv Pratap Shukla presented the honorary doctorate, PhD and M.Phil degrees, medals and prizes. Twenty‑three research scholars received PhD degrees and one scholar received an M.Phil degree.
Women accounted for 29 of the 38 gold medal recipients. Sixteen medals went to undergraduate students and 22 to postgraduate students. Bojjanapalli Shri Ashritha received three gold medals, while Kadiyala Saibhanu, Hazeera Begum and Shiva Parvathi Chippala won two each. Manthena Sridevi and Thota Shwetha also secured two medals each in postgraduate programmes.
Suresh, an inmate of Rajahmundry Central Jail, secured the highest marks in all subjects, according to the university. Twenty‑seven inmates from Cherlapally, Rajahmundry and Kadapa central jails received degrees, including 12 in undergraduate and 15 in postgraduate programmes. The group comprised 26 men and one woman.
Shukla praised BRAOU for taking education to rural, remote and disadvantaged communities, noting that the university had provided opportunities to more than 25 lakh students. He referred to its Samatha scheme, which offers free education to economically weaker sections, disadvantaged communities and tribal groups.
Vice‑Chancellor Prof. Ghanta Chakrapani said BRAOU was moving towards an Open Digital University, expanding digital content, learner services, skill programmes, internships and apprenticeships. “Digital transformation should not create a new digital divide,” he said, stressing the need for access for rural students, women, persons with disabilities, transgender students and tribal communities.
Former NAAC Director and former BRAOU Vice‑Chancellor Prof. V.S. Prasad said open universities had widened access to higher education and reduced its cost. Speaking on AI in education, he added, “AI should remain a tool for human development and should not become the master of human beings.”
