Dr. Rao took the centre stage to explain the significance of indulging in sports. He says, “The adherence to rules of sports trains one to be disciplined in their personal lives. Sports entails physical fitness which can be leveraged to improve the alertness of mind, further assisting the students to be able to work hard in the frontiers of academics,” Dr. Rao also trusts that team sports enable the youth to work together to achieve common goals by strategizing and executing plans in a given time frame.

Dr. D. Gunasekaran further enthralled the students with his speech where he emphasized physical fitness and a positive mindset being mutually reciprocal. He states, “The complex systems of our being are maintained by the body and controlled by the mind.” He expresses his concerns that the youth are inclined to indoor games and video games which are not synced to fitness. “A nation’s development depends on its youth, and India is a vibrant country where we have a substantial young population. Inspiring this population to maintain physical fitness will ensure the growth of our country.”, says Dr. Gunasekaran.

On 16th February afternoon, the Valedictory Ceremony began. Mr. JBS Vidyadhar, former Indian badminton player and present coach of the Indian Badminton Team graced the ceremony as a chief guest. Distinguished presence of Prof. D. Narayan Rao, Dr. D. Gunasekaran, Dr. G S Vinodh Kumar, Dr. Abdul Mohimain, Mrs. Revathi Balakrishnan, added dignity to the ceremony. The Men’s team of SRM University-AP bagged the runner-up prizes in football and chess tournaments. The women’s team of the university also secured runner-up positions in throwball, basketball and table tennis tournaments. Sri Rama Murthy, a member of the runner-up chess team of SRM University-AP, overwhelmed with joy, says, “this trophy has boosted our confidence. We hope to perform even better in the coming years.” K L University, with four champion’s trophies, was declared to be the overall champion of the Sports Fest -2020. With our national anthem in the background, this spirited festival came to an end with a promise of more successful events in the following years.

With grand exuberance, SRM AP welcomed the Chief Guest, Smt. B. Vijayakeerthi, IRSE, Divisional Engineer, South-Central Railway, Guntur. She initiated the celebration by lighting the ceremonial lamp, along with Prof. D. Narayana Rao, Pro VC, Dr. B. Sivakumar, Deputy Registrar, Ms. Revathi Balakrishnan, Convener, and a student. Breaking gender biased roles, Smt. B. Vijayakeerthi pursued a career in Civil Engineering. A student of IIT Madras, she later aced Indian Railways Service of Engineers examinations and joined Indian Railways. She recalls, “From the day I chose Civil Engineering, I was questioned by society as the norm was that women avoided taking up engineering domains that involved field-work. However, irrespective of my gender, I persuaded my dream and challenged myself to excel against all odds. Initially, although encouragement was rarely found, persistence and hard work ensured that support started pouring in from all ends.”

Smt. B. Vijayakeerthi set a record by improving the railway track parameters from 96 to 130, and her phenomenal work of eliminating 10 unmanned level crossing gates within a period of 6 months, brought her immense recognition. Persuading young students to follow their dreams, she says “Career choices are solely personal, and it does not depend on gender. One should have the confidence to aim big, and also to take a leap towards achieving the dream.”

The winners of the competitions hosted as a part of women’s day celebration, were honoured by the Chief Guest. The spectacle concluded with the students giving out a social message through cultural program – a skit, song, and dance performance. Their acts demonstrated the societal challenges faced by women and the necessity of bringing about a change to empower them.

Madala Yasaswi
AP19211010019
BBA

Amrutha Tadisetty
AP18110020128
ECE-B