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Class 10 Board results: Despite financial problems, health ailments, Lucknow’s braves score big
CBSE Class 10 Board exams: Finances or health problems have not broken the spirit of four children from Lucknow, who have managed to achieve CGPAs of 9.6 to 10
Lucknow: They’re students from cash-strapped families where education is an expensive proposition, and one suffers from a severe eye ailment, but four students in the city beat all odds to shine in the Central Board of Secondary Education Class 10 examination, the results of which were declared on Saturday.
Overwhelmed with happiness,Shivam Asthana, a student of St Anjani’s Public School, Rajajipuram, could not stop tears from flowing. “I am satisfied with my result. I have earned 9 CGPA (cumulative grade point average, which combines marks from all terms in an academic year) because of the struggles of my parents through the years. Nothing has been served to us on a platter. I don’t take anything for granted,” Shivam said.
His father works in a private firm and handles the accounts but finds it difficult to earn enough for the family. “Luxuries are out of the question as bare necessities take precedence. Students sometimes jeer at us but I do not retaliate. Expensive smartphones, laptops, watches or new clothes are not on my wish list,” Asthana said.
Shubham’s other siblings are bright students too. Older brother Shubham is extremely sharp in studies and a budding film maker. He has already made a few documentaries which have done well on youtube. Asthana has also acted in one of them.
Their youngest sister Stuti has remained a topper since Class 1. “The school has been extremely supportive in terms of fee concession,” Asthana said.
School manager Taru Saxena is all praise for Shivam’s father as well as the hard work and talent of the children. “Both Shivam and Stuti are sharp as well as hard-working. Their parents have really struggled to give the three children a head start (in life) by imparting quality education despite their modest means,” she said.
Another student of the same school, Ishu Rastogi, has also risen above hardships to secure a perfect 10 CGPA in Class 10. His father sells ready-made garments and Rastogi is determined to join an Indian Institute of Technology. “I believe my result is the starting point of this success story. Now the pressure to help my father in his work will be less. I worked extremely hard,” Rastogi said.
Their friend, Avijit Srivastava, secured 9.6 CGPA despite severe eye problems (related to the cornea). It appears to be hereditary as his older brother (who managed a 10 CGPA despite the ailment) has it too. Srivastava’s father is a teacher and the young student is determined to be a doctor and find a cure for the suffering he and his brother have to endure because of the eye problem.
Ayushi Gautam, born in a village in Uttar Pradesh, seemed destined for a life lived in obscurity. Coming to Lucknow changed it all as her school ensured she got enough support to do well. With a 9.8 CGPA, Gautam said, “Girls are not expected to study in my family. The ones who do are put only in government schools. My father was progressive enough to put me in a private CBSE school. I have slogged to make him and my mother proud.”
