Jharkhand boy reaps 14 gold medals at Horticultural varsity convocation

A student from Jharkhand bagged as many as 14 gold medals at the second convocation of the University of Horticultural Sciences held here on Friday.

Abhay Kumar Gaurav, who hails from Pipradi village in Koderma district of Jharkhand has secured fifth rank in the examination conducted by Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and is pursuing MSc in floriculture and landscaping from ICAR. He has also secured junior fellowship with a stipend of Rs 8,400 per month.

“I am more delighted about learning Kannada than securing gold medals. My four-year stay in Karnataka is unforgettable,” Gaurav told Deccan Herald. He said in the beginning there were no proper facilities for the students at the university. “The campus was filled with shrubs and bushes. Language, culture, food are were totally different for me,” Gaurav said.

He said he was not proficient in English initially and now could speak in English and Kannada with ease. Gaurav said he intends to be a horticultural scientist and take technology to fields for the benefit of farmers. As many as 150 students were conferred bachelors’ degree and 49 secured master’s degree at the convocation. Gold medals were present to 38 meritorious students on the occasion.

The following students secured gold medals in MSc (Horticulture): Amreen Taj (four medals) Anushma (three medals) Le Shang Tem Jeebith Singh (two medals) Sheela Malaghana, Akshita H J, Gangadhar K and Veena G L (one each medal)
Gold medallists in BSc (Horticulture): Abhay Kumar Gaurav (14 medals), Sandhya Ganapathi Bhat (four), K M Asha (three), Gururaj Kakamari (two), Netravathi and Gurudayal (one medal each).