SINGAPORE - A record 782 students and university graduates here were recognised at the Sinda Excellence Awards on Saturday - the largest cohort of recipients since the self-help group's honours were launched in 1992.
The annual awards are given to Indian students who have done well in their studies or sports and the arts.
This year, 95 per cent of all Singaporean Indian students progressed to post-secondary education pathways, up from less than 80 per cent two decades ago, said Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Lawrence Wong at the award ceremony, which was held at Nanyang Polytechnic.
There were significantly more recipients across various categories than at any other time in the awards' 31-year run. For example, 96 students collected the award in the International Baccalaureate category - an increase of 75 per cent from 2021.
This comes despite the past two years of Covid-19 being an incredibly challenging period for students, said Mr Wong, adding that students here had to adapt to online learning, coping with the stress of social isolation, and finding new ways to connect and work with their classmates.
The award recipients affirm that there is a better way of living than settling for mediocrity, he said, adding that happiness comes by seeking excellence in all areas.
Mr Wong lauded Singapore Management University freshman Valliammai Lakshmanan who received the polytechnic diploma award for her resilience in pursuing accounting and finance despite failing to enter the polytechnic course after N levels.
Instead, the 22-year-old took a Higher Nitec in accounting from the Institute of Technical Education. With stellar grades, she enrolled into Temasek Polytechnic, where she eventually graduated as valedictorian and a recipient of the Lee Kong Chian award.
Saturday's event was held in person for the first time since 2019 and was attended by Senior Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who chairs the Sinda board of trustees, and Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Indranee Rajah.
Recipients ranged from those who received good results in the Primary School Leaving Examination to university graduates with bachelor's degrees across 16 categories. Each awardee received between $150 and $500.
Commenting on the increasing number of award recipients over the past four years, Ms Indranee, who is also Second Minister for Finance and National Development, said: "What it really signals is that Indian students are doing well. Year on year they are doing better because for each category, the numbers have increased."
Commending the recipients, Sinda chief executive Anbarasu Rajendran called on more people to step up to mentor younger students.
He said: "What we are trying to do now is see ways to further enhance (the awards)... We also want to see how we can bring in aspects such as mentorship and internship for the students, so that they can have a better view of the job scope they want to choose."
