With Governor's intervention, Osmania University topper to get gold medal

Hyderabad, Oct 30: With the intervention of Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, Vishnu Vachana Murapaka, a topper in M.Sc. Genetics from Osmania University, will receive the gold medal.

Following her appeal, the Governor reached out to leading vaccine maker Bharat Biotech, which offered to sponsor the gold medal for the topper.

Vishnu Vachana will be presented with the prestigious gold medal during the Convocation on October 31, Raj Bhavan said in a communiqué.

Earlier, the topper was told that she would not receive the gold medal as there was no sponsor. She was also barred from attending the Convocation.

The Governor reached out to Krishna Ella, Executive Chairman, and Suchitra Ella, Managing Director of Bharat Biotech International Limited.

Both generously offered to sponsor the gold medal for the Genetics topper.

This philanthropic gesture exemplifies Bharat Biotech's steadfast commitment to recognizing and nurturing talent within the scientific community, the communiqué said.

Tamilisai Soundararajan extends her heartfelt appreciation to Krishna Ella and Suchitra Ella for their prompt response to her appeal and their unwavering dedication to advancing genetic sciences and fostering excellence among young scholars.

Earlier, Vishnu Vanchana had sought Governor’s intervention after she was denied a gold medal on the ground that her department has no sponsor.

Vishnu Vachana Murapaka, wrote to the Governor, who is also the Chancellor of university, that it was disappointing as she is not even being given a memento or other kind of award.

Her father M.S.R Venkata Ramana had told IANS that the university authorities informed her that she can’t even attend the convocation scheduled on October 31 as the ceremony is only for PhDs and gold medallists.

Vishnu Vachana, a resident of Hyderabad, completed Master's in Genetics from The Department of Genetics and Biotechnology, Osmania University in 2022. She is currently pursuing doctoral degree (Ph.D.) at CSIR-CCMB (Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology).

After doing bachelor's in Genetics and biotechnology in Telangana Mahila Vishwavidyalayam, Koti (Koti Women's College), Hyderabad, she chose Osmania University to pursue M.Sc. in Genetics.

She emerged university topper in M.Sc. Genetics from 2020 - 2022 batch by securing 8.75 CGPA on a scale of 10 and passed in first division with distinction.

"However, I felt very saddened 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. Not just a gold medal, there is no other kind of appreciation like a memento or at least a certificate for my achievement," the student wrote to the Governor.

When Vishnu Vachana brought this to the notice of the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. D. Ravinder, and the Registrar, Prof. Pappula Laxminarayana, they told her that somebody had to donate money for the gold medal and no one has donated to the Department of Genetics and Biotechnology.