EDUCATION SPECIAL..UNDERPRIVILEGED STUDENTS CRACK IIT-JEE

UNDERPRIVILEGED STUDENTS CRACK IIT-JEE

27 of 30: Super 30 does it once again

Patna’s free coaching centre for poor students continues with its super performance

PATNA Bihar’s Super 30, a free coaching centre for underprivileged students, has once again defied the myth of expensive private classes. In another big score, 27 of the 30 students at the Patna institute have cracked the highly competitive Indian Institute of Technology-Joint Entrance Examination (IIT-JEE) this year.
    "It is again good news that this year, 27 out of the 30 students made it to the IIT-JEE... it has underlined how with proper opportunity, students from poor families can also reach the prestigious IIT," said Super 30's founder-director Anand Kumar.
    The results of IIT-JEE 2012 were announced on Friday. A daily wage labourer, a security guard, a grocer, a marginal farmer and a truck mechanic are among the proud fathers whose children have realised their IIT dream, thanks to Super 30.
    Ashish Ranjan, son of a truck mechanic, said his family and everyone in his village are in a celebratory mood. "My father was ecstatic when I informed himaboutmysuccess.However,hekept saying ITI, instead of IIT," said Ashish.
    Sonu Kumar Rudra, whose father is a daily wage labourer, said his father and relatives did not believe him when he told them that he had cracked the IITJEE.
    Sumit Kumar Gupta was on cloud nine after seeing his result. "I learnt about Super 30 through a newspaper. I came to Patna and took the entrance test. Luckily, I made it to Super 30 and that changed the course for me. Else, with the meagre income from my father's grocery shop, I would not have been able to continue my studies.”
    Last year, 24 students of the institute had cleared the IIT-JEE. In 2003, the first year of the institute, 18 students made it to IITs. In 2008, for the first time, all 30 students of the centre cracked the exam, a feat which was repeated in 2009 and 2010.
    Super 30 was selected by Timemagazine in 2010. Its success story has featured on Discovery Channel. Three years ago, Norika Fujiwara, a former Japanese beauty queen and actress, made a documentary film on Anand Kumar’s initiative.
    Students from poor families have to clear a competitive test to get into Super 30 and then commit themselves to a year of 16 hours a day study routine. They are provided with free coaching, food and accommodation. Anand Kumar said the institute is supported by income generated from his Ramanujam School of Mathematics, which charges students. AGENCIES