As many as 229 students from the district cleared the National Means-cum-Merit Scholarship (NMMS) exam, the results of which were declared by the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) on Saturday. Across the state, as many as 2,210 students have passed the exam, with Ludhiana having the highest pass percentage.
The exam is conducted for students of Class 8, who on clearing the exam become eligible to receive an annual scholarship of ₹12,000 per annum till they complete senior secondary school.
Out of the 229 who cleared the exam, 145 belong to general, 57 to scheduled caste, 23 to backward class, and four to physically-handicapped category.
Abhay, a student of Government High School, Giaspura, topped the district, scoring 131 out of 180. The second position was bagged by Gurleen Kaur, a student of Government Model Senior Secondary School, Punjab Agricultural University, and the third position was secured by Umar Farooq of Government Senior Secondary School, Basti Jodhewal. Both scored 127 marks and 121 marks, respectively.
District education officer (secondary) Lakhvir Singh congratulated the students, teachers, and school heads for this achievement.
In Ludhiana, the top two schools, from where the maximum number of students cleared the exam are Government Senior Secondary School, Basti Jodhewal, and Government Model Senior Secondary Smart School, Punjab Agricultural University.
Abhay Kumar, the first position holder, said, “I will use the scholarship amount to pursue higher studies. I have worked hard and attended all the online classes for exam preparation. The first position in the district came as a surprise. The credit goes to my teachers Hari Dev, Paramjit Kaur, Deepika, and school in-charge Hem Lata, who encouraged me to appear for the exam.”
Abhay’s father Harish Chander Mahto is a welder and his mother Anita Devi works in a factory.
The second position holder, Gurleen Kaur, stated that she put in a lot of effort to clear the exam.
The 12-year-old student said, “I dedicatedly prepared for two months and finally cleared the exam. It is a big achievement and I am overjoyed to have made my school and parents proud.”
She aims to become an army officer and stated that she will use the scholarship amount for further studies. Her father Satnam Singh is a shopkeeper and her mother Charanjit Kaur a housewife.
Umar Farooq, who bagged the third position, is a resident of Meharban. He said, “The online classes have been very helpful. My teachers had guided me before the exams. I have put in dedicated hours for preparation and revised the concepts daily to score full marks in the tests.”
His father MD Sakin stitches blankets and his mother Faimida Begum stitches mats for a living.
Of the 2,210 students who cleared the exam, 170 are from Jalandhar, 159 from Hoshiarpur, 158 from Amritsar, 157 from Patiala, 141 from Sangrur, 127 from Gurdaspur, 111 from Bathinda, 98 from Tarn Taran, 91 from Moga, 89 from Fazilka, 73 from Mansa, 71 from Ferozepur, 70 from Muktsar and Kapurthala, 66 from Rupnagar, 62 from SBS Nagar, 58 from Barnala, 54 from SAS Nagar, 53 each from Fatehgarh Sahib and Faridkot, 50 from Pathankot.
