Boy from Maoist zone gets IIT degree from ISRO chief in Delhi

The journey of Sonu Gupta from his native village Pakari Guria — which was a Maoists-dominated area — under Imamganj police station in Gaya district, to IIT , New Delhi surprised everyone around him.

It also grabbed the attention of the chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) K Sivan who blessed him and expressed his gratitude to his parents. On Saturday, Sonu had received the BTech degree from Sivan at the convocation in New Delhi. Sonu was a student of Gaya-based Magadh Super-30, which also produced IITians like Saurabh Gupta and Chaitanya Arya. While Sonu and Saurabh received their BTech degrees from the ISRO chairman, Chaitanya could be able to receive his M.Tech degree.

“When I graduated, my parents and family members were happier than I was. Even today, they remember my graduation day. The same will be for all of you too. So let me congratulate all the parents who have supported you to see you here,” said Sivan while addressing the gathering at the IIT convocation.

“It’s like a dream coming true. We had been fans of Sivan sir and had a long-cherished dream to spend few minutes in his company. His simplicity and his love for students won our hearts and we are proud to have a great personality like Sivan sir in our country,” said Sonu.

Coordinator of Magadh Super-30, Pankaj Kumar said, “Our main objective is to identify the talents across rural Bihar, especially aspirants who are unable to pursue higher studies for financial constraints. More than 200 of our students have already made it to the IIT or NIT during the last five years.”Kumar also expressed his gratitude to the former Bihar DGP Abhyanand who he said has been regularly guiding them to carry forward the mission.