Udupi: “Students should have an aim and work hard to achieve success in life”, said Bishop of Udupi Diocese, Most Rev Dr Gerald Isaac Lobo while addressing the students and their parents at a function organized jointly by the Catholic Sabha Udupi Pradesh and John D’Silva Foundation to distribute ‘Pratibha Puraskar’ awards to meritorious students at the Manasa Rehabilitation and Training Centre, Pamboor on Sunday, 16 October 2022.
Speaking further, Bishop Lobo said that in this competitive world, students have many avenues through which they can achieve success in life. But to achieve this, they must possess a competitive mindset and hard-working tendencies. Rather than behaving like frogs in the well, students should set the right aims and objectives for their future and work accordingly. In this way, they can achieve success and fulfilment in life.
Bishop Lobo also said that there are many opportunities for our children in our own country and they should take advantage of such opportunities. For the next 20 years, there are various business opportunities in the country, but children should acquire the necessary qualifications and expertise to be employed in such businesses. When the students appear for various competitive examinations, they acquire the necessary insight and experience and can clear these examinations with good marks and get employment in the fields of their choice. For this, students should be prepared from a very young age to get used to the New Education Policy of the government.
Former MLA, J R Lobo, speaking on this occasion, said that more and more students from the Catholic community should try to get into government service. They should not consider that the public service is plagued with corruption. One should consider the fact that as the lotus blooms even amid slush in the lake, so also the students from our community should think in terms of providing clean and honest service to the people. Parents should empower their children by supporting them to pursue the education that would enable them to join government service.
During the programme, SSLC and PUC students who had scored the highest marks during the public examinations 2021-2022 were honoured with the ‘Pratibha Puraskar’.
John D’Silva, the chief of the John D’Silva Foundation and Mrs Gladys D’Silva, Spiritual Director of the Catholic Sabha-Udupi Pradesh, Fr Ferdinand Gonsalves, immediate past president of the Catholic Sabha-Robert Menezes, present President of the Catholic Sabha-Mrs Mary D’Souza, Secretary Gregory P K D’Souza, President of the Manasa Institution -Henry Menezes and the organizer of the programme-Dr Jerald Pinto were present.