Bengaluru, DHNS: The mother believed that it was not necessary to study in convent schools to make it to the top. The daughter proved her right in style.

Swathimutthu B N, from Hiriyur of Chitradurga district, studied at a Kannada-medium government school. Merit was her only drive and she went on to study BAMS. On Thursday, she won five gold medals at the 19th annual convocation of the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS).

Her mother, B T Girijamma, was overjoyed. “By scoring such high marks, she has debunked the myth that only students of private schools do well and make it to the top,” she said. Deepti Agarwal (MBBS) bagged five gold medals besides a cash prize. “My parents supported me in all my endeavours. Steady and consistant preparation helped me,” she said.

For another topper, Bhagyashree U?G, the journey to the top was not easy either. “My father passed away when I was young. My mother bought me up single-handedly. She pursued her higher education when I was in class 5 and remains my motivation,” she said. Her mother is a medical practitioner.

Dr H Sharath Chandra, director, Centre for Human Genetics, who delivered the convocation address, said medical colleges and hospitals must be located on the same premises. “India spends just 1.5% of the GDP on healthcare. We must raise it to 2% in the years to come. Bengaluru is a hub of start-ups. Most of the start-ups focus on healthcare or healthcare devices. There is a lot of scope for research,” he said and stressed that genetics would help find cure to many diseases in the near future.