They were from the society’s margins, low on morale and opportunity. But on show at the alumni meet of the A.P. Social Welfare Residential Educational Institution was sheer confidence, a measure of what the body had managed to achieve over nearly three decades of its efforts through education.
More than 2,000 alumni and students turned up for the event at Ravindra Bharathi on ‘Swaeroes Day’, the first-ever such interaction of the APSWREI. While the first two letters of ‘Swaeroes’ stood for social welfare, the latter half came from the Greek for flight.
The event also commemorated the services of late IAS officer S.R. Sankaran, who was instrumental in setting up the APSWREIs in 1984.
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APSWREI Secretary R.S. Praveen Kumar said ‘Swaeroes Day’ would be celebrated every year on October 25, remembering the contributions of Mr. Sankaran.
Mr. Praveen Kumar said the society had churned out 2.5 lakh students so far but there was no platform for networking. The beneficiaries of the government programme were back to re-engineer their identity, and also send a message that together they can excel. He also released ‘10 commandments’ of APSWREIs – on building confidence and paying back to society – while asking students to follow them seriously.
The meeting was addressed by retired bureaucrats like K. Raju, chairman of the Congress party’s SC Cell, former State Chief Secretary Kaki Madhava Rao and DGP B. Prasada Rao. Mr. Raju asked APSWREI alumni to go back to the villages and motivate children from suppressed classes, that it was the only way to pay back to society. Mr. Madhava Rao recalled the services of Mr. Sankaran and of how he remained a bachelor to serve the poor. Mr. Prasada Rao said successful students should contribute to their alma mater.
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