Two government school students get merit positions

Despite all odds, two government school students made it to the merit list from the district by scoring 96% or above marks in the Class-10 examination conducted by the Punjab School Education Board (PSEB).

Although the two – Shiv Charan and Asha Rani – are from financially weaker section, they proved that government school students are as capable as others.

Shiv Charan of Government Senior Secondary Model School, Punjab Agricultural University, bagged the twenty-first rank in the state with a score of 96.31%. His father, Suraj Bhan Sharma, who always motivated him to work hard, died just two weeks before the declaration of results on Tuesday. His mother, Salochana, is a homemaker.

Shiv, who wants to pursue the non-medical stream in Class 11, aspires to become an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer. He has also bagged the ninety-fifth rank in the joint entrance test (JET) conducted by the Punjab State Board of Technical Education and Industrial Training.

He has been receiving the national means-cum-merit scholarship of `500 per month, but after his father’s death, his teachers are looking for a person to sponsor his further studies.

Recalling the days during the exams, Shiv said his father used to prepare tea for him while he revised the syllabus.

Asha Rani of Government High School, Bhaini Salu village, meanwhile, is also on cloud nine after scoring 96% marks. She managed to obtain the twenty-third rank while studying at a school that is facing staff crunch.

Asha’s father, Rajkumar, is a labourer while her mother, Paramjeet Kaur, is a homemaker.

Asha, who won the national means-cum-merit scholarship as well, was unable to buy new uniform and books due to her poor financial condition, said her teacher Jaswinder Singh.

Asha said she wants to become a doctor and will take up the medical stream in Class 11. She thanked her teachers and family for always motivating and supporting her. She, too, requires financial aid to pursue higher studies.

Last year, only one government school student’s name featured on the merit list.