Sikh student rises against all odds, bags Malaysian university VC award

By Asia Samachar Team | MALAYSIA | PHOTOS: Shanno Randhawa |

Engineering graduate Amardeep Singh Dhillon was beaming end to end at the Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka (UTEM) convocation ceremony. And he had every do so.

The 25-year old graduate won the Vice Chancellor Award and was selected to deliver a speech at the ceremony earlier this week.

The success did not come easy. Etched deep in his memory is the time when his father, who was rearing cows in Buntong, Ipoh, met with an accident. Amardeep was then 8 years-old.

His dad Gurdir Singh ended up bedridden following the accident. His mother, Ranjit Kaur, was a housewife.

“It was tough after father met with the accident. We went through a lot of pain. We were helped by the welfare department and some non-government organisations to meet our daily requirements,” he told Asia Samachar.

“Despite all this, we always motivated each other not to give up on life. I’m fortunate to have a great family and I’m always thankful to God for this utmost blessing.”

After delivering the convocation speech, Amardeep walked down the podium to give his mother a hug.

“She’s great. She’s strong. She directed towards every success in my life,” he said.

Amardeep, who is currently pursing his PhD at Monash University in Kuala Lumpur, has been a shining star at his university. Last year, his team topped the inter-university Inclusive Innovation Challenge 2018 (IIC) with their invention of an energy harvesting mechanism. He had also won gold in the Innovation and Design Expo (IDEX) 2018.

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Amardeep Singh tops Malaysian university innovation challenge (Asia Samachar, 17 Dec 2018)