A youthful journey: Hostel Day 2023 held

The students of AIMIT hostels celebrated hostel day on February 21. The programme was held in the Arthur Shenoi auditorium of the college. The theme for this year’s hostel day was ‘A Youthful Journey’. Dr Alwyn D’Sa, Registrar and COE, St Aloysius College (Deemed to be University), was the chief guest, Fr Melwyn Joseph Pinto SJ, Rector St Aloysius Institutions, presided over the function and Dr (Fr) Praveen Martis, SJ, Principal was the guest of honour. The director of AIMIT and the AIMIT hostels, Dr (Fr) Melwyn Sunny Pinto, SJ, welcomed the gathering.

The hostel day programme started with a traditional prayer dance. The hostel students then rocked the stage with various dance forms such as Dandiya, Punjabi, Goan, Retro, Bollywood and the fusion dance giving a cultural twist to this event. Finally, the drama directed by Raghu Soori, conveyed a strong message that we need to be agents of change in society.

Speaking on the occasion the chief guest Dr D’Sa recalled his hostel life. “A hostel is another world all together within a campus where student help each other to face difficulties of life. It is in the hostels that the bonding beyond boundaries happens. Thus, hostels should become a library of learning in the campus,” he said. He wished the students to have a life that is meaningful, enjoyable and fruitful.

Principal Dr (Fr) Praveen Martis SJ asked the hostel students to make their hostel life a time of continuous self-discovery by celebrating diversity. He urged them to make use of the facilities provided in the hostels to learn various skills and excel in life.

President of the function, Fr Melwyn Joseph Pinto SJ emphasised the importance of touching each other’s lives with the rich gifts each of them had as they came from various backgrounds and cultures and lived as one family in the hostels. Appreciating the precision and quality of the hostel day programme he said, “Even in life you need to put in precision and quality in whatever you do. Be professional in life to be successful,” he said.

During the programme the services of the support staff were acknowledged gratefully in a special way by the hostel students and they were honoured and presented with a memento. The winners of the Annual Hostel Sports Day which was held on February 11, were awarded with certificates and trophies. Team ‘Great Spirits’ was the over-all champions and team ‘Blue Strikers’ were the runners up.

Vanessa Gokavi, the hostel leader, proposed the vote of thanks. The hostel warden Sr Lizy Ann and the sub wardens Fr Joel Fernandes SJ and Fr Alwyn D’Souza SJ made all the arrangements in connection with the programme. The function ended with a sumptuous dinner arranged by the College food court.