Mysuru: It is rightly said that when one is passionate and determined to reach his or her goal, no barriers can stop them. Here is an inspiring story of two students belonging to Mysuru — S. Arun Kumar (banana seller’s son) and L. Priyanka (auto driver’s daughter). Students of Sankalpa Gopalaswamy Pre-University College in Mysuru, both of them, despite coming from a financially weak background, have set an example that with hard work and dedication, one can achieve their dreams and pave their successful careers.

Star of Mysore spoke to these achievers who have cleared their competitive exams and have made their parents and teachers proud. They were driven by passion and determination and have excelled in their areas of interest.

Banana seller’s son qualifies to be junior scientist

Arun Kumar, a 2nd PUC student of Sankalpa Gopalaswamy PU College, has cleared the reputed KVPY (Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana) Junior Scientist Exam conducted by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc). He is the son of Shivanna and S. Manjula. Shivanna is a banana seller while Manjula is a daily wager who ensured that their son gets good quality education.

Arun was determined to make his parents proud and worked hard to excel in his studies. Speaking to Star of Mysore, he said, “I stand 744th in the All India ranking in this Junior Scientist Exam. I used to attend the special training classes that were conducted in my college which helped me a lot in preparation for this exam. Now according to my ranking, my seat will be allocated.”

On his further studies, Arun said, “If I consider my All India Ranking, I will easily get a seat in IISER (Indian Institute of Science Education and Research), Pune. But if I consider my category ranking I will get a seat in IISc., Bengaluru. So I look forward to join IISc and become a scientist. I will be choosing Physics as my area of research and studies. When I completed my SSLC exam, I had no clue of what to do next as I have no interest in Commerce or Arts. Now I look forward to become a scientist.”

In his ninth standard, Arun was selected to go to Shivamogga to take part in the Yuva Vignani competition and he caught up an interest of becoming a scientist. Being from a poor background did not deter him from achieving his goals. He left no stone unturned as he worked day in and day out to live his dreams. The college supported him by offering a scholarship of Rs.1.4 lakh and was also provided training for KVPY exams. Arun will now get admission at IISc based on his merit. Other than KVPY, Arun has also qualified JEE exams for admission to NIT/IIT and scored excellent marks in 2nd PUC (96.33%).

Mother speaks

Arun’s mother Manjula said: “We wanted him to study and pursue whatever he liked. We did not have much educational background but we wanted to ensure that he gets good quality education and pursues whatever he likes to do.”

She particularly remembered the special role of her son’s High School teacher Aishwarya who identified his talent and tapped his potential and requested the PU College authorities to offer scholarship.

College offers help

College authorities appreciated Arun’s parents. Academic Head Akshay Rao said, “When they came for admission enquiry after Class 10th, we were impressed by the interest taken by his parents (who did not have much educational background) regarding the education of their child. We immediately approved scholarship for Arun considering his talent, financial instability and keen interest of his parents. If all private Institutions provide at least 4 to 5 scholarship seats for such poor students, our country will get many more talents.”

At a time when toppers from every institute either join medical or engineering, there is an acute shortage of scientists in our country which has produced so many scientists in the past. Quality research and innovation is essential and it is the need of the hour. And those who want to do research join B.Sc.

KVPY exam is an initiative by the Government to help students achieve their dream of becoming a scientist. Now that Arun has cleared that exam, he will be studying at IISc and will also receive the KVPY scholarship of Rs.5,000 per month and a yearly contingency grant of Rs.20,000.

“When Arun came here, he wasn’t sure of what career he needs to choose. But here at our college we provide career counselling and encourage students to take up competitive exams and provide special training. He was regular to extra classes where we trained students for KVPY exams. He put in all the hard work, and now he has achieved it,” Akshay said.

The course at IISc is an integrated course and after the course, Arun will be eligible to directly do Ph.D.

“We are also expecting him to get a rank in the CET and we are sure that he will be one of the district toppers. Arun has utilised the scholarship and the support from his family well and has put his head down and studiously put efforts to achieve his own destiny,” he added.

Auto driver’s daughter passes JEE

Priyanka, a 2nd PUC student of Sankalpa Gopalaswamy PU College, is the daughter of auto driver Lakshman and a house wife, N. Sujatha. Priyanka always wanted to become an engineer and her determination and passion has driven her to achieve it.

She has now passed Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) and is now eligible for admissions at NIT/IIT for Engineering. She has also delivered excellent results in 2nd PUC exams by scoring 93.7%. She was also offered Rs.1 lakh scholarship by the college.

College authorities were singing praises in favour of Priyanka’s father.

They said: “Priyanka’s father used to visit to the college almost twice a week to enquire about his daughter’s progress. We were so happy to see his interest in her education. He was so concerned about his daughter’s education that he wanted to monitor her every step. He is a role model as an ideal father from low-income society and their story should send a message across that ‘Girl Child Education’ is important.”