PC: Gautham Zen

Student Councils are an integral part of every student body. They represent us as a whole, organise events, and advocate for our interests and concerns with the management. The Page sat down with two members of our new Student Council; Joshua Tom George, S7 EEE, the Chairperson, and Alan Mathew Joby, S1 CSE Alpha—two leaders at opposite ends of their college journeys.

The seasoned senior and the fresher might seem very different, but who knows? Maybe they’re very similar. Dive in as we find out.

“I never really thought I’d be Chairperson in first year”, Joshua recalled. “Second year, I stood for class rep but lost being second year rep by a toss, and in fourth year, everything went smoothly—I stood for election, won it, and now I’m Chairperson”, he chuckled.
The rest of the Student Council, according to him, has been very supportive and active, everyone takes part equally. During Onam, when a lot of volunteers didn’t show up, he was able to manage things smoothly with the help of the council and some of his friends. “If the council wasn’t there, we’d have been in hot water”, he said. 

When we asked him what plans he has as Chairman, he said;

“First, I’d like to smooth out how we can coordinate events by talking things out with the management, and two: I’d like to make a lot more people involved. A lot of the students let four years pass by without participating. Instead of seeing the same faces over and over, I’d like to see new ones.”

Advice he wants to impart to the juniors?

“Participate and organise events. If you organise events, you’ll be more dynamic. When events happen at college, don’t go running home”, he laughed. “Attending workshops, hackathons and events can give us a lot more ideas than what we get in classrooms. 

He has bright hopes for the coming batches. “We can’t really say if they’ll be any different than the batches we already have, and with how we’re conducting Abhiyanthriki—on a weekday instead of how we usually conducted it on Fridays—maybe they might not follow the trend of going home instead of participating for events, who knows?”, he said. 

Wishing him luck, we moved onto the next interviewee, Alan.

“I feel a bit anxious, a bit curious and a bit happy—mixed feelings of everything”, he admitted, when we asked him about how he felt being on the Council as a freshman. He wasn’t really sure of what happens after he got the post, his role and responsibilities—which might be why he was anxious. 

He credits his experience as part of the student council at his school as what made him the person he is now.  What he learnt through those experiences at school proved useful for him—it was one of the reasons why he chose to stand for First Year Representative in college. “Many people of my batch wanted a positive change, and since I was able to make that possible, they elected me, and I’m grateful to them for that.”

As freshmen are, he wishes to make friends for life at college and thinks he is immune to the “First Year Curse” —I’m sure all of you have heard of it, or gone through it, if you have, I’m sorry. “Rajagiri has a fun, decent vibe”, he said. “Making friends here is relatively easier; everyone is a bit more open.”

What are his expectations for his batch?

He wants active participation and involvement from the first years. He wants all of his batchmates to not focus just on academics, but also follow their passions, whether it be sports, singing, dancing, etc. They can do the same by participating in the events that the council and various clubs organise. “Make college life feel more lively, by getting involved in many events”, he said. “That is my approach.”

“If I’m still in the Council in fourth year? I will look back and say that the last four years of effort were not in vain. I hope my whole batch will be able to take pride in the fact that the 2025-2029 batch is the most famous of this college, that everyone was able to do what they wished to do in college, that they were able to follow their passions.” he said. He wants his batch to make history at RSET. 

Every junior will have a senior that they look up to. As First Year Representative, Alan says; “I feel inspired by Joshua Chettan, the Chairperson, Athul Chettan, the Vice-Chair, and Milan Chettan the Arts Secretary, and a lot more seniors, including Vian Chettan, he motivated me a lot. Also the ex-Chairperson, Alna Chechi also contacted me and guided me.” he said. “I have gotten a lot of positive motivation from a lot of my seniors.”

Being a part of the Council, listening to the opinions of a huge student body, representing us as a whole, organising and planning events, carrying them out perfectly, talking to the Management for us, are just some of the many tasks the Student Council has. It was very daunting, and certainly not for the weak. We can rest assured—we’re in good hands.

What does the Student Council have in store for us? 

And I can’t help but feel like a commentator when I say this; keep an eye out for our First Year Representative, who knows what kind of waves he’ll make?