A convoy of 60 bikes with 120 students could be expected to be a noisy affair. Except, the rally they took part in on Monday, December 9, was the exact opposite. This was a silent rally conducted by students of St Joseph's College (Autonomous) to raise awareness about educating the girl child.

“We can transform a girl’s life through education. I think women are more intellegent than men and getting them educated will surely reflect on the growth of our nation,” said Dr Issac CB, who took part in the rally to ensure riders' safety.

“Today we see many women being treated as slaves of the patriarchy: they are either answerable to the father or the husband or are oppressed in many ways in society. So, it becomes important to encourage women to follow their dreams” he told The Beacon. The rally covered Hosur Road, Margrath Road, Recidency Road as well as Bishop Cotton School and all the St Josephs institutions. “We chose this topic collectively because it's the need of the hour. With everything happening in the country, education for girls has become even more important," said Erwin, a member of the college's Student Council. “It was difficult to get the necessary permissions for this event. It took us about a week, but we did it,” he said.

Josephites earn laurels for Kasaravalli critique
Maria Thomas, Leah Liz Jacob and Sudeshna Chakravarti final year postgraduate students of Mass Communication and Journalism at St Joseph’s College (Autonomous) were on Sunday, December 8, awarded the top prize for their reviews of films by Girish Kasaravalli. The noted filmmaker himself handed over the prizes for the Best Critical Analysis at the event Kasaravalli 70 at the programme conducted by Suchitra Film Society, Karnataka. The programme was organised by UNNATI Cinema Adhyayana Kendra KVS Aptha Rangamandira in collaboration with Suchitra Film Society and SCCA. "We watched the films and write reviews as part of our curriculum for this semester and we knew no Kannada. Having won this award despite that is a proud feeling," said Leah. Colleges across the city attended the event that screened three of Kasaravalli’s works and conducted seminars.