ABEL BARRETO
CANACONA: What’s in a name, it’s often said, but for self-inspired Savio Carvalho, who hails from a humble background, it may spell everything!
For the lad who braved all adversities and emerged triumphant cracking Joint Entrance Exam (JEE) and secured a seat in Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, his Italian name literally means ‘clever.’
The tribal student, born and brought-up at Caregal-Tilamol, under the loving care and guidance of his grandmother Juvana Carvalho, earned the distinction of making it to IIT, Kanpur, after passing the advance examination of IIT, Pune.
He disclosed how some Goan youth helped him financially to pay his fees after he sought help through social media. Curchorem MLA Nilesh Cabral had also come forward to help him financially and now things are looking up for this bright lad after a Goan industrialist assured him of taking care of the entire fees.
Herald caught up with the Principal S. Kannan of Jawahar Navodhaya Vidyalaya, Mastimol, Canacona, where Savio studied to find out how the residential school metamorphosed this mischievous child into a bright student, who cleverly learnt the art of cracking the JEE to secure admission at the prestigious IIT.
The principal, who was transferred here when Savio was in std VII, kept his eyes on students from poor, disturbed families to reform them and was dismayed to find out that the lad was also indisciplined and often played truant.
However, he kept him under strict vigil and in due course, the boy changed dramatically and began taking his studies seriously. The turning point came when Savio was selected by NGO Dakshina Foundation that coached students to answer competitive exams like IIT and that is when he got the opportunity and was transferred to Pune JNV.
The principal still recollects the incident when the JNV, Pune complained to him about Savio’s sneaking out of school complex in the night without permission and how he stood behind his ‘now-changed’ student, saying he yearned for non-vegetarian food and took responsibility for his action.
“If there is discipline in life success will be the by- product, “the principal says with pride, adding that the major achievements of this school were that the school had topped for the past two years in XII in Pune region, which has 65 JNV schools, besides getting 2nd position at national level on visual Kala Utsav conducted by ministry of human resource last year.
He proudly says that on an average three students from this school get admission to GMC, eight in Goa Engineering College and two in NIT. Most achievers from this school come from a very poor background with their parents either working as daily wage workers or other type of work who are not well- educated
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Savio thanks grandmother
Savio did his primary education at Our Lady Mother of Poor High School, Tilamol and SSC at Navodaya High School, Canacona, where he secured distinction through CBSC board and then joined Navodaya School, Pune, an institution that trains students for IIT.
“I was the only Goan among toppers who passed advance exam for IIT,” Savio revealed with pride and informed that he is scheduled to leave for Mumbai on Saturday to get himself admitted to IIT, Kanpur.
Savio spares no words of gratitude for his grandmother for bringing him up and supporting him by working in the fields and doing chores in people’s houses, as he has no father and his mother is perennially ill.
