A student of Rambhola High School in Cooch Behar district, Sen scored 693 marks out of 700 (99 per cent). “Dividing my day into smaller sessions instead of studying for long stretches helped me score well. So, I used to study for about 40 minutes, then took breaks of five to 10 minutes..Instead of just memorising, I tried to understand the concepts. This time, the questions were more concept-based, so I thoroughly studied the textbook and supplemented my knowledge with guides,” said Sen while talking to reporters.
The results of the West Bengal class 10 state board examinations were declared on Thursday, with over 9.12 lakh students clearing them. Among the students who cleared the exam, 4,03,900 are males and 5,08,698 females – 25 per cent more than the boys. The pass percentage for this year’s Madhyamik exams is 86.31 per cent. West Bengal Board of Secondary Examination president Ramanuj Ganguly said the pass percentage was 86.15 per cent last year. Sen scored 100 marks in mathematics, life sciences and geography. He got 99 marks in first and second language papers, 98 in history and 97 in physics. He also mentioned his strong passion for biology and that he aspires to become a doctor. “I also have hobbies like debating, singing, story writing and art. However, I had to put these activities on hold to prepare for the exams. Now that my exams are over, I’m eager to pursue them again,” he said.
Samyapriyo Guru from Purulia Zilla School in Purulia district bagged the second rank by scoring 98.96 per cent (692 marks). Like Sen, he also wishes to pursue a career in medicine. “I always liked studying at night as the peaceful atmosphere helps me concentrate better. I had hoped to score good marks but never thought I could appear in the top three. I plan to opt for science and would try to become a doctor,” said Guru.
The third position was shared by Udayan Prosad of Balurghat High School in Dakshin Dinajpur; Puspita Basuri of New Integrated Government School in Birbhum; and Nairit Ranjan Pal of Narendrapur Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya in South 24 Parganas. All three scored 98.71 per cent (691 marks).
Talking about her preparation, Basuri said that having a mother with a teaching background helped her ace the exam without attending any tuition classes. “I dedicated 10 hours a day outside of school hours for my preparation. I didn’t attend any tuition classes, but received a lot of support from my mother, who comes from a teaching background,” said Basuri, adding that she wants to become an engineer in the future.
Pal, on the other hand, dedicated his success to his school and teachers. “All credit (for my success) goes to the Ram Krishna Mission Vidyalaya. I used to study five to six hours a day. We were told to focus on self study,” he said. Students from Cooch Behar, Purulia, Dakshin Dinajpur, Birbhum, South and North 24 Parganas, Hooghly, Purba Bardhaman, Malda and Paschim Medinipur were among the Top 10 rankers.
Among the districts, Kalimpong has the highest pass percentage of 96.26 followed by Purba Medinipur (95.49) and Kolkata (91.62).
Among the candidates from Kolkata, Somdatta Samanta of Kamala Girls School was among the top 10, securing 684 marks (97.71 per cent). Samanta was among 18 candidates who scored the same marks and secured the 10th rank.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee congratulated the successful candidates.
“My best wishes and congratulations to all the students who passed the secondary examinations. My congratulations to your parents and teachers. May your coming days be prosperous, I pray,” she said on X.
Ganguly said, “The consistent trend of past years of students from other districts outperforming their peers in Kolkata in the class 10 board examination shows that educational scope and infrastructure is not confined to the metropolis and is equally available in smaller towns.”
(Taniya Acherjee is an intern at the Kolkata office of The Indian Express)