The Singapore Indian Development Association (SINDA) commemorated its annual SINDA Excellence Awards (SEA) virtually this year, with the highest number of recipients in its 29-year history.
With a dedicated website to celebrate the achievements of students in the Indian community, SEA 2020 recognised 653 top achievers across 19 categories in the academics, arts, sports, and technical skills. This is 26 percent more than last year's cohort size.
This year’s recipients will receive between SGD150 to SGD500, depending on their award category.
Minister Indranee Rajah, who is also the President of SINDA, acknowledged this upward trend in Indian students’ performance and the larger numbers.
“With this increased number of award winners, we are heartened that more Indian students are doing better and achieving stellar results. It also signals to us that the Indian community’s academic performance is on a very positive, upward trend," she said.
This year, in recognising multiple pathways, SEA 2020 introduced the ‘International and National Competitions’ category. Through this category, SINDA acknowledged students who have represented Singapore in international sports meets or who have made achievements at WorldSkills competitions, covering a wide range of disciplines.
One such recipient was 20-year-old Devesh Logendran, who participated in the WorldSkills competition held in Russia in August 2019, and represented Singapore in the field of cyber-security.
Despite battling a medical condition, Devesh remained focused on the competition and emerged the bronze medal winner. He is currently a full-time National Servicemen and will be pursing Information Security at the National University of Singapore thereafter.
Addressing students virtually, Ms Indranee also reaffirmed the government’s emphasis on education as a social leveller.
“Education is, and will remain a priority for the government. This is especially significant now, in this current climate of uncertainty, and we will continue to adapt our education approaches, so that our students will develop the required breadth and versatility, be well-equipped with the right skill sets to fulfil their aspirations and thrive in the future economy.”
Anbarasu Rajendran, CEO, SINDA, shared that the organisation was focused on providing low-performing students as much educational assistance and opportunities as possible, to level them up and support their academic and life pursuits.
"All of SINDA’s efforts are to ensure that no child is left behind due to a lack of access to opportunities. This is why I’m especially proud that almost 1 in 5 awardees this year were from SINDA’s programmes and that we could play a meaningful role in their progress and success,” he said.