New Delhi: Among all the unfortunate news making rounds during the coronavirus pandemic, a happy one comes in from New Delhi. This year, 569 government school students have cracked the common medical test NEET 2020.
Among the 569 are medical aspirants who could hardly afford expensive studies, son of an employee at a small book depot earning Rs 5,000 a month, 20-year-old whose mother works at a doctor’s clinic and many more.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday lauded the efforts of the aspirants who despite hardships managed to emerge winners.
Speaking on the 569 Delhi government school students who cleared the National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test (NEET) this year. “379 (67%) out of the 569 Delhi government school students who cracked NEET this year are girls. At least 48 of these students scored more than 500 out of 720 in NEET. At least 29 of these students are from Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya (SKV) in MolarBand, 24 are from SKV Yamina Vihar (C1) and 23 are from SKV Noor Nagar. Girls from Delhi government schools performed really well in the medical entrance test,” Kejriwal was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.
Among those appreciated by Kejriwal during a digital press conference are Tamanna Goyal, 20, Khush Garg, 18, and Ayush Bansal.
Tamanna Goyal scored 695 marks in NEET and secured the 11th rank in the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) category. “My mother works at a clinic and she wanted me to prepare for medical exams after I finished schooling. I got in touch with my school and they suggested I take entrance exams for a coaching centre to get a scholarship and I managed to get one. My mother is so happy now as I am going to be the first-ever doctor in the family,” she said.
On the other hand, Khush Garg who secured the 709 all-India rank in NEET did not have enough financial assistance to join a coaching class. His father runs a small shop in Shahdara.
“The coaching centres were asking for Rs 2-3 lakh and we could not afford that. I decided to start the self-study. With the help of my teachers and a strict study schedule, I managed to crack the exam,” he told Hindustan Times.
Similarly, Ayush Bansal who is set to join IIT-Roorkee struggles with financial conditions. His father works at a book store in Nangloi and earns Rs 5,000 a month.
In the press conference, Kejriwal promised financial resources to every student. “For all the students who cleared 12th and who lack resources for higher education, but have secured admission in colleges, the Delhi government has scholarships to offer, And any student, rich or poor, can get a loan amount of up to Rs 10 lakh without submitting any collateral, from the Delhi government and can exercise their right to education,” he said.
Furthermore, this year, 443 Delhi government school students cleared the JEE (Main) of whom 53 cleared the JEE (Advanced) for admission to IITs.