Mangalore, 23 Mar 2014: Five prominent personalities and proud alumni/ae were honoured by St Aloysius College Alumna/e Association (SACAA) during Aloysian Conclave held at the College campus here on Saturday March 22.
The Eminent Aloysian Alumni/ae Awards were presented to ICICI Bank chairman Padma Bhushan K V Kamath, UAE Exchange – global operations COO Y Sudhir Kumar Shetty, St Aloysius Evening College former principal Lena Fernades, Syndicate Bank former general manager and Bank of Maharashtra CEO Allen C A Pereira and Beta Agencies and Projects Private Limited managing director N G Mohan.
Padma Bhushan K V Kamath in his Aloysian Conclave address recalled his days in the college and said, ‘I think most of my classmates would have strayed, if St Aloysius College had not laid a strong foundation while nurturing them at the tender age,’ said Kamath.
Even though, he further studies at prominent colleges after St Aloysius, the education that he he received in the school enabled him to achieve his aspirations, added Kamath.
Commenting on the recent state of economy in the country, Kamath said at present, India is witnessing the best time for youth as the country has shown a sharp progress in the economy over the last 2 decades. ‘About 20 years ago India was lagging behind in many sectors showing slow progress GDP. However, its after 1991, with liberalization, privatization and globalization, the country has seen a growth in the economy, even marking a growth rate of up to 9 percent,’ said Kamath.
‘India has seen a revolution in the consumerism, with people coming forward to invest money. There has also been a drastic change in the buying behavior of the people, added Kamath.
‘To country’s misfortune, after 2001 the economy slowed down, with poor government policies and slow implementation of power and other projects. I hope the next government would resolve problems and give a facelift to the country’s economy. Let me be very optimistic than pessimistic,’ said Kamath.
Sudhir Kumar Shetty expressed his gratitude to the College for selecting him for the award. He further said, ‘This is the best award that I have ever received in my life, since it is bestowed by my College,’ said Shetty.
‘When we go out of the country, we represent our nation and people there are keen to know which institution educated the outsider. In this regard, he is proud to proclaim that he was a student of Aloysius College,’ said Shetty.
Other awardees also recalled their times in the college and struck a chord with those gathered at the venue.
Fr Denzel Lobo in his presidential address said, ‘This College will soon get the status of university. This College is among the top 50 autonomous colleges across the nation,’ said Fr Lobo.
St Aloysius College principal Fr Swebert D’Silva, SACAA president Michael D’Souza and organizing Committee president Professor Edmund Frank were present at the dais.