ICSE Class 10 results: Hargun Kaur Matharu from Pune is all-India topper

All-India Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) topper Hargun Kaur Matharu, from St Mary’s School, Pune, secured 99.8 per cent in the exams. She was at her younger sister’s birthday party on Sunday when she got to know about the results.

“Consistency is the key. I have not yet decided what I want to pursue but I’m very interested in science, engineering and robotics,” said Matharu.

ICSE results were announced on Sunday and the pass percentage was 99.97 per cent.

Pune also bagged the second rank as Shivani Deo secured 99.6 per cent and is the second national rank holder. The third rank holder from Pune is Bhargava Kollapalle who secured 99.4 per cent marks in the exam.

Besides Matharu from Pune, Kanpur resident Anika Gupta, Balrampur’s Pushkar Tripathi and Kanishka Mittal from Lucknow scored 99.80 per cent or above. Three of the four winners are girls, while one is a boy.

Matharu’s mother Sukhvinder Kaur Matharu is a banker and her father Dev Singh Matharu is an IT professional.

“Because of the first semester, we had an idea of the exam. But the all-India ranking was completely unexpected. I feel that the most important part is classroom learning and we have experienced teachers. Once we understand the topic in school, preparing becomes very easy,” said Hargun.

Dev Singh Matharu, her father, said that she has always been a bright student.

“We never forced her to get good marks as we believe that learning is more important than marks. But she has done exceptionally well. We are very proud of her. She has been active in robotics and other extracurricular activities. She was also the head girl last year. She has ruled out medicine and is planning to take a JEE course. She is yet to decide what she wants to do in the future but I am confident that she will make the right decision,” said Singh.

This year a total of 231,063 candidates appeared for the examination out of which 125,635 boys and 105,369 girls passed the examination.

Deo, who secured 99.6 per cent marks said that she wants to pursue engineering.

“With the new pattern of examination, there are a few plus points and a few negative points. I was able to focus on topics as the semester syllabus was reduced. I could do better in small parts. I studied consistently. I made sure that I gave my full attention during classes and I think that is what has helped me,” said Deo.

Swapna Deo, mother of Shivani who secured 99.6 per cent from St Mary’s School said that she was excited and proud of her. Deo, a housewife, said that Shivani is a very hardworking girl.

“Shivani will be continuing with Math and Science. Two years of the pandemic were tough for Shivani and others as well. But her school helped with regular online classes. Even for the new semester pattern and multiple-choice questions, the schools prepared the students very well. The school regularly conducts prelims and practice tests to prepare the students,” said Swapna.

She added that Shivani was in the athletic club at her school and actively participated in the robotics club as well.

“She has received medals in relay races as well. She was in the robotics club as well. This year she even mentored her juniors who are now in the robotics club,” said Swapna.

The best pass percentage in India is 99.99 per cent in the Southern and Western regions, and 99.98 per cent in the Northern region.

The third topper from the city, Kollapalle secured 99.4 per cent. His mother is a housewife and his father is an IT professional. Kollapalle, a student of Vidya Pratishthan’s Magarpatta City Public School, Pune, said that not just hard work but smart work is the key.

“I am thrilled at the result and also unable to process it. I want to do engineering and will be preparing for JEE. I think consistency and smart work are important. I focused on my strong subjects but at the same time prepared hard for topics as well which I thought I was weak at. I often took breaks to refresh myself and refocus myself. But I remained consistent throughout my year of studies. I feel smart work is equally important,” said Kollapalle.