Results of the higher secondary exams conducted by the West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education were announced on Wednesday, with many gutsy teenagers proving that they could surmount testing times with flying colours.
The Telegraph meets a few
Tushar Debnath
Score: 496/500 (second in the state)
School: Boxirhat High School, Cooch Behar
Tushar, the son of a vegetable seller, stood ninth in the state in Madhyamik exams, 2023. In HS, he bettered his past performance. A cricket fan, he wants to study astrophysics in the future.
Mou Kundu
Score: 450/500
School: Netaji Girls’ High School, Siliguri;
Mou, who scored 90 per cent, is the daughter of a salesman who earns around ₹9,000 a month. Mou had to be careful about every paisa. “My father works very hard to support my studies. I want to study further and do something that will secure a better future for my family,” said the girl.
Biju Roy
Score: 444/500
School: Siliguri Netaji High School, Siliguri
Biju lost his father early. His mother, a part-time cook at events, earns around ₹5,000 a month. A scholarship of ₹12,000, which he received last year, helped ease some of the financial burden. “I love English and geography and I want to become a teacher and make my mother proud,” he said.
Bipasha Paul
Score: 440/500
School: Netaji Girls’ High School, Siliguri
Bipasha’s father drives an e-rickshaw and earns around ₹12,000 a month. With limited income and rising expenses, she isn’t sure if she can pursue her dream of cracking NEET. She credits her teachers and the free YouTube tutorials for her results.
Diparna Karmakar
Score: 430/500
School: Barlow Girls’ High School, Malda
Her father is a drawing teacher and photographer and makes around ₹18,000 a month. Money is short, but Diparna wants to study economics and do research in the field.
Priti Sarkar
Score: 427/500
School: Netaji Girls’ High School, Siliguri
Daughter of a carpenter who makes around ₹8,000 a month, Priti’s 85.4 per cent shows her never say die attitude. “I want to study further and get a job,” she said.
Kon Singha
Score: 338/500
School: Cooch Behar Town High School
Kon, from Assam’s Dhubri district, is visually challenged. A carpenter’s son, he had earlier studied in the blind school in Cooch Behar. He appeared in the HS exam with the help of a writer. “I’ll pursue graduation and join the banking sector,” he said with conviction.
Satya Roy
Score: 334/500
School: Cooch Behar Town High School
Visually impaired Satya hails from the Brahmapur village of Mainguri block in Jalpaiguri district. Satya had studied in a blind school in Cooch Behar till Class VIII and then joined the school. Satya lost his father as a child and his mother is a farmer.
“I want to study history and get a job to take care of my mother,” he said.